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The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
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Only 1 Worker Mans NYC ID Card Station Despite People Lined Up in Snow

By Katie Honan | January 26, 2015 3:24pm
 Only one person is working on appointments at the Jackson Heights location 
Applicants Wait in Snow for Muni ID Card Appointments as Demand Continues
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JACKSON HEIGHTS — Dozens of people braved an impending blizzard and sub-zero temperatures to wait for an appointment to get the city's new municipal identification cards, but only one person was at work to assist them, officials said.

Those waiting for appointments huddled outside the offices of Make the Road, one of only three centers in Queens administering the new cards, as snow began to fall ahead of what was predicted to be an historic blizzard Monday.

But only one person was working there Monday to make appointments because of space constraints, an official said. Applicants will have to wait until the fall to make appointments there.

Due to the blizzard, locations will likely be closed and appointments will be rescheduled in the coming weeks, an official said.

An official with the Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs said they are urging people to make appointments online or by calling 311 instead of waiting outside in the cold.

But some people on line in Jackson Heights said they tried those options and only came in-person after experiencing issues.

Angel Dutan said he tried making an appointment online last week but kept getting an error message, and had been waiting on Roosevelt Avenue for three hours. 

He called 311 multiple times but said he either couldn't get through or was told to try again.

"Sometimes they say 'call back another day,'" he said. "That's what I came here to wait in line, but this is cold weather."

A spokesman for 311 said the agency hadn't experienced any delays or issues at their call center.

Since rolling out the IDNYC program earlier in January, the city has processed more than 12,000 applications, according to an official. 

On the first day, the website to make appointments crashed — and elected officials, who breezed through the application process to get their cards, admitted the response was overwhelming. 

"We always predicted there was going to be a large demand," City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito said the week the program was launched. "What we're seeing is incredible demand."

To meet that demand, city officials said they are expanding sites and opening new locations, including one at LaGuardia Community College that should open by the end of the week.

But not all locations are booked solid, according to an official. The lower Manhattan location, for example, has availability in March.

Wilson Garzon said he's been using his passport from Ecuador as identification, and looked forward to having a different ID card soon.

He waited for two hours Monday after trying to make an appointment over the phone and online.

"When we have to take a class for OSHA, they need an ID and I have to bring my passport," he said.

He also uses the passport for parent-teacher night at his stepchildren's school.

"If I can get one card, quickly, it's much better."