VENTURA : Retiring City Hall Switchboard Operator Replaced by a Recording

Callers to Ventura City Hall no longer get a live human being to talk to.

Although Aileen Bogner, the city’s switchboard operator for 25 years, isn’t retiring for a few weeks, she’s already been replaced by a recording.

Bogner had answered about 500 calls a day, helping to direct people to the correct department or person.

But voice mail “is the wave of the future,” Bogner said. “There aren’t many governmental offices anymore where you can call and they’re not automated.”

Bogner, 64, said she is looking forward to retiring. She plans to travel and fix up her house, although she said she will miss talking with people.

But she isn’t surprised that the city is making the change. “It’s about time,” she said. “We’re one of the last people to do it.”