No Area Post Office Closings til at Least May

If the Southeastern United States Postal Service (USPS) Processing and Distribution facility ends up closing it wouldn't be until at least May 15, 2012. That word came Tuesday afternoon from Post Office Spokeswoman Cathy Yarosky in Philadephia.  In a phone interview with TE Patch Tuesday, Yarosky said the postal service made the decision to "delay the closing or consolidation of...postal facilites until May 15, 2012."

The giant postal depot on Valley Road in Devon is one of 252 USPS sorting and distribution facilities and 4,000 local post offices being considered for closure or consolodation next year.

In terms of the Southeastern facility, Yarosky says no decision has been made and the USPS is "still studying it." If the postal service decided to close or consolidate the Devon facility, which includes a full service post office and mail depot, it would have to go through several steps including:

•Start an intial feasability study

•Give 15 days notice for a public meeting, then

•Give another 15 day period for customers to comment on the proposal then

•The entre proposal, including public and customer comments goes to USPS management for review, which usual takes about 3 months.

Even if the process were to start by December 15, it could take well into March. So the new date of May 15 for any closings would only add about two months to the timeline.

One postal worker, speaking on the condition of anononimity before the 3:15 p.m. announcement had been made,  told Patch that many workers were going under the assumption that they would either retire or be transferred to the Lindbergh Boulevard USPS facility near Philadelphia International Airport.

Yarosky would not comment on rumors and emphasized that no decision has been made about the Southeastern facility.

The text of the USPS news release on the proposed closings reads as follows:

The U.S. Postal Service, in response to a request made by multiple U.S. Senators, has agreed to delay the closing or consolidation of any Post Office or mail processing facility until May 15, 2012. The Postal Service will continue all necessary steps required for the review of these facilities during the interim period, including public input meetings.

The Postal Service hopes this period will help facilitate the enactment of comprehensive postal legislation. Given the Postal Service’s financial situation and the loss of mail volume, the Postal Service must continue to take all steps necessary to reduce costs and increase revenue.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.