Local post office to stay open
Deficit forces agency to close other facilities
By Larry Meyer
Argus Observer
Wednesday, August 5, 2009 10:09 AM PDT
ONTARIO — A Postal Service panel is in the middle of a review of several hundred facilities around the nation for possible closure to reduce a growing deficit, but none of the offices on the list are local or in rural communities or towns where there is a single post office.
The U.S. Postal Service has submitted a list of almost 700 offices for possible closure or consolidation to the Postal Regulatory Commission for its review, and additional offices could be added to the list.
According to the U.S. Postal Service’s year-end report for 2008, the agency ended the year with a $2.8 billion loss. The report said there was a 4.5 percent decline in the volume of mail handled from 2007. The decline was blamed on the downturn in the economy and the greater use of electronic mail.
“There are six facilities on the list for Oregon,” Peter Haas, Postal Service spokesperson for Oregon, said. “None are in Ontario, Vale or Nyssa.”
Actually, there are no postal facilities east of the Cascades on the list, he said.
The offices and stations on the list are in large metro areas where there are multiple facilities. In Oregon, three of the areas connected to a possible closure or consolidation are in the Willamette Valley. Three are situated in Portland, two in Salem and one is in Eugene, Haas said.
However, while the postal commission is considering possible closures, regionally the Postal Service will open a contract Post Office in the Bridgetowner Business Development at Meridian.
The announcement about its opening said the contract location has the same look and feel as a regular post office but is open an hour later and has Saturday hours. It is also equipped with new weighing and pricing equipment.
The Postal Service itself has been cutting back on hours and taking other cost-cutting measures, and recently raised the price on stamps by two cents.
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