Sandra Mitchell might need extra stamps to stuff all of her objections into a letter on the possible closing of her neighborhood post office.
Mitchell said word spread quickly Thursday across her north Omaha neighborhood that postal officials are considering closing Florence Station at 29th and State Streets and five other city post offices in a cost-cutting move.
“Everyone is up in arms about it,’’ she said.
Closing post offices isn’t a sign of a thriving community, she said.
“First they closed the post office at the airport, where we had 24-hour service. We’re supposed to be a big, growing metropolitan city with all these new things the taxpayers are paying for and the Postal Service is going down the tubes? It doesn’t make sense.’’
Mitchell said she doesn’t have a computer and doesn’t pay bills or write letters via the Internet.
“Going to the post office is how I pay bills and communicate with people,’’ she said.
Omaha Postmaster Evajon Sperling is considering closing the post offices under a national station and branch consolidation study. She said she targeted offices with declining customer visits and revenue.
The reality is that there are many other ways for people to buy postage and send letters and packages than relying on an official post office, said Roger Humphries, a U.S. Postal Service spokesman in Omaha.
“Omaha is just like the rest of country,’’ Humphries said. “We’re affected by the recession and we’re experiencing a decrease in mail volume. We’re just like any other business. We have to make tough decisions on ways to cut costs. That’s exactly what we’re doing.’’
Omaha offices considered for closing are at 16th and Vinton Streets, 17th and Farnam Streets, 24th and Lake Streets, 30th and Leavenworth Streets, 136th and Q Streets and the Florence Station.
Three Lincoln post office stations also are on the list for possible closing. They are Woods Park, 35th and O Streets, University Place at 2427 N. 48th St. and the State Office Building at 301 Centennial Mall South.
No rural post offices in Nebraska and western Iowa are affected, said postal service spokesman Brian Sperry in Denver. But that doesn’t mean they won’t be under scrutiny in the future.
“Given our current financial situation, I think everything’s on the table to be looked at, but currently the (rural) post offices are not being studied,” Sperry said.
Opponents were quick to fight the proposed closings.
John Morrissey, a member of the American Postal Workers Union, collected signatures Thursday on petitions to keep the Florence station open. He worked outside that post office during his lunch hour.
Almost every person who passed by signed the petition. One signer, Harold McGinnis, said he has used Florence Station for 65 years.
A postal union representative told the Associated Press that, under the contract, workers wouldn’t lose their jobs, although transfers could be expected.
Some of the targeted postal sites, such as the Vinton, Lake and Leavenworth sites, already operate with reduced hours and bare-bones staffing. No carriers operate out of the offices. The sites offer counter service and postal boxes.
Florence Station is the only one of the six targeted sites used as a base for carriers making home deliveries. Florence Station’s counter and carrier services would move to Ames Avenue Station.
Sperling said she expects to make a recommendation to the Postal Service by Aug. 19. Omaha postal officials will hold public hearings about the recommended closings before the deadline.
Contact the writer:
444-1127, david.hendee@owh.com
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