Leaders plan on taking abrupt closure of social security office to D.C.

MILWAUKEE, WI (CBS 58) – The Social Security office in the city’s south side closes this week. People living in the area are worried how it will impact their families.

The abrupt closure is a frustration residents share with local leaders, and they say it stems from the failure to follow proper closure procedures.

In February, city and state officials announced the closure which they were made aware of in January.

They held a press conference in February outside of the former Forest Home Library, that now sits vacant, to announce it as an alternative location. Officials say they never heard back.

Till this day, officials says they’ve been left in the dark as much as patron have.

CBS 58 reached out to the Social Security Administration and they sent us this statement:

The Social Security Administration will consolidate its Milwaukee Mitchell office, located at 1710 S. 7th Street, with other Milwaukee offices effective Thursday, March 22, 2018, due to ongoing facility maintenance and safety issues. There are times when we have to consolidate an office for health and safety reasons and Social Security does not obtain formal public input. However, the agency has been notifying local public officials, community organizations and third party partners for a couple months.

All employees of the office will relocate to surrounding offices. We are confident we can provide quality service in one of our four nearby offices moving forward.

Residents living in the Milwaukee Metro service area may conduct business at any Social Security office. The closest offices are located at:

Milwaukee Downtown Milwaukee West

310 W. Wisconsin Ave. 5020 W. North Ave.

Milwaukee, WI 53203 Milwaukee, WI 53208

Milwaukee North Greenfield

6300 W. Fond Du Lac Ave. 8455 W. Layton Ave.

Milwaukee, WI 53218 Greenfield, WI 53228

Officials fear the negative impact the closure will have within the community and they plan on taking the matter to Washington D.C.

“They’re suppose to take public comment and they’ve done none of that,” says  Darryl Morin from LULAC Wisconsin. “If they’re not going to do it , we’re going to do it and send it to them. I’ll also have you that we’ve invited them to be here tomorrow and so far, they’re dodging our calls.”

We reached out to Congresswoman Gwen Moore’s office for comment and she sent us the following statement:

“The Social Security Administration’s decision to close the Mitchell Street Field Office at the expense of an already underserved community and in violation of congressionally mandated closure and consolidation policies is inexcusable. I am encouraged that, in response to my request, the Inspector General will be investigating how the decision was made to close the Mitchell St. Field Office and its impact on my constituents.“In addition to calling for this investigation, I will continue to pursue every avenue for protecting my constituents and ensuring that Milwaukee’s Southside has uninterrupted access to the SSA services to which they are entitled.”

The community is invited to an input session by local leaders at the new Mitchell Street Library from 6PM-9PM Tuesday, March 20th.

Anyone with concerns is invited to join and share the impact the closure will have on them.

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