TRAVERSE CITY — A broken valve in the Governmental Center’s heating and cooling system forced the building’s closure.
Temperatures in some sections of the building dropped into the low 40 degrees Monday morning just as a winter storm warning took effect.
Both county and city employees were instructed to leave for the rest of the day, although some continued working remotely, officials said.
The multi-story building at 400 Boardman Ave. is about 45 years old. It provides office space, customer service counters and meeting space for both Grand Traverse County and Traverse City government employees and elected officials.
“We have water-based heating and cooling system that was (installed in) 1978 or ‘79,” said County Administrator Nate Alger. “One of the valves would not allow water to flow. As the (repair team) was trying to fix the valve, it continued to get colder.”
Alger said he expected the problem to be fixed by Monday evening and that the building will likely reopen at 8 a.m. Tuesday.
The county jail and court system were not affected by the outage, officials said.
Because of the outage, standard heating was not available in the 911 dispatch center. However, emergency services staffers were able to continue to work, thanks to the addition of some extra heating equipment, officials said.
Meetings and services
Monday’s Traverse City commission meeting, which was originally scheduled for 7 p.m., was canceled at 2:39 p.m., according to an email statement from City Communications Manager Colleen Paveglio.
All Traverse City Area Public Schools were closed Monday because of the inclement weather. Both in-person and virtual classes were canceled.
In-person services for Traverse City water and sewer, tax payments and all BS&A integrated payments, were not available Monday afternoon. Water and sewer bills can still be paid online. Utility, tax and other payments also can be left in the red drop box in front of the Governmental Center, Paveglio added.
Many county services also are available online at the county website.
More snow ahead
The National Weather Service said a winter storm warning for Grand Traverse and Kalkaska counties will remain in effect until 7 a.m. Tuesday with additional snow accumulation forecast.
“Heavy lake-effect snow is expected again today and tonight, this time favoring the Grand Traverse Bay region and points south,” a Gaylord weather service office website advisory noted Monday. “Additional accumulations of 6 to 12 inches-plus are possible through Tuesday morning.”
Drivers are cautioned to be alert for rapid drops in visibility and hazardous travel conditions.
More snow is expected at times from Tuesday through Sunday, according to National Weather Service officials.
“In addition to the snow, gusty winds will create areas of blowing and drifting snow with reduced visibilities. Whiteout conditions are possible in some areas Wednesday night into Thursday,” the weather service reported.