New county offices open in Luzerne County

Amelia Sack
·2 min read

HAZELTON, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)— New county row offices are officially open at Hazleton City Hall in Luzerne County.

It’s opening day for the Luzerne County offices at city hall in Hazleton.

That means that residents from the southern tier of the county no longer have to make the trip to Wilkes-Barre for certain services.

Residents and county officials say they’re excited about the expansion.

Christina Vasquez from Hazle Township was struggling to commute to the Luzerne County courthouse for her appointments.

Now, she’s just one of the people in the county’s southern tier who can get select services closer to home, at Hazleton City Hall.

“I had a situation where I had an appointment in Wilkes-Barre, and I had to keep rescheduling,” said Vasquez.

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“Cause a lot of people can’t go to Wilkes-Barre just like that, and so it’s definitely a lot of help for a lot of people who are in the same situation I’m in,” stated Vasquez.

City hall is now home to several county offices.

“We have judicial services which we are calling our row offices: that is the prothonotary clerk of courts, recorder of deeds, register of wills. We have marriage licenses,” explained Jennifer Pecora, Operational Division Head of Luzerne County.

Gun permits, treasurer, and veterans’ affairs services are also available.

County administration will also be at city hall during the week.

County officials say the decision is a step in the right direction.

“We have a very dense population down here in the southern tier of the county, and we think it’s really important to bring the services to the public here,” said Pecora.

“We’re a very large county geographically, but we are one county, and this is just one step closer to making sure that everybody knows Luzerne County is staying together,” stated Romilda Crocamo, Luzerne County manager.

Officials say this project was almost a year in the making.

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