It was in the budget, now its out but could be back in again.

Last night, St. Catharines councillors voting against a plan to set up a customer service department at city hall.

The move was originally approved by members of the city's budget committee, but full council decided not to spend 250 thousand to launch a call centre of sorts.

In a report by economic development director David Oakes, he notes calling city hall with questions or complaints is frustrating for residents and actually costs the city money.

Oakes says a customer service department would improve efficiency and customer satisfaction.

But the arguments did not sway the majority of councillors who decided to remove the expenditure from the 2013 budget.

However, Mayor Brian McMullan tells 610 CKTB news, there is a chance the issue may be debated again during the city's final budget meeting on February 25th.