The fourth district office to be affected by the change of hours will be the Alpha District Office located at 121 Pondella Road, North Fort Myers. The 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. hours take effect this Sunday, June 13, authorities said.

After hours and on weekends, citizens will be able to use an intercom phone connection to the Sheriff’s Office call takers at the dispatch center, should they need a deputy to meet them at the Pondella Road location. The change does not impact road patrol response or services, which are already coordinated through 9-1-1 dispatch at the headquarters facility. Deputies will continue to operate and utilize the District Office and provide the same service as in the past.

In the past couple of weeks, the new hours were successfully implemented at the Bravo, Charlie and Delta District Offices of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. The changes have come as a cost saving measure in light of the economic challenges facing local government, authorites said.

The estimated savings by reducing the hours and reallocating the civilian personnel assigned to the districts is more than a million dollars a year, Sheriff’s officials said. A review of the services offered at night and on weekends revealed significantly less foot traffic and incoming calls by citizens, which could be redirected and absorbed along with other clerical duties, authorities said.

The Bravo District Office is located at 1301 Homestead Road in Lehigh Acres. The Charlie District Office is located at 15650 Pine Ridge Road, Fort Myers. The Delta District Office is located at 8951 Bonita Beach Road, Suite 565, Bonita Springs, Florida. An update will be provided soon announcing the planned change at the Echo District Office.