Politics & Government
Postal Branch Closing in La Grange Park Not a Sure Thing Yet
Trustees say U.S. senator states no immediate plans to close local office or cut hours.
Closing of the post office branch in La Grange Park due to cost-savings cuts by the U.S. Postal Service is not a sure thing, according to village trustees.
Trustee Susan Storcel told the Village Board last week that the village has contacted U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin and there are no plan to close the branch or shorten hours, for now, according to an article in the La Grange Doings.
The Patch was unable Friday to talk about the matter to village officials or Beverly Howard, in charge of corporate communication for the Central Illinois district of the U.S Postal Service.
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The postal service is working through financial issues and closing offices throughout the United States may be considered, but not in the near future, Storcel said.
The lease for the building at 700 E. 31st St. expires in October and postal service authorities are negotiating with the landlord; if a new contract is not approved, the branch could close, Howard is quoted as saying.
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La Grange Park held an open house Jan. 30 to discuss the possible closing of the post office branch and residents requested the help of U.S. Rep Daniel Lipinski D-Western Springs, who attended, to save the branch. Lipinski promised to work with Village President James Discipio to keep the branch open. Residents’ comments were videotaped and were to be sent to postal service officials in Washington D.C.
The village also conducted a telephone survey of residents in February and a mail survey in November.
At a meeting that night, Rick Bassi, manager of post office operations for the La Grange Park area, told about 50 residents that the reason for the possible closing of the La Grange Park branch was economics. The cost of delivering mail—fuel, increased deliveries and lower revenues as more customers pay bills and buy stamps online—were at the root of a need to scale back nationwide.
But the U.S. Postal Service has other problems as well contributing to their financial woes, including a high cost of labor—due to high healthcare costs and pension funding, he said.
Walk-in revenue at the La Grange Park branch has been declining, Bassi said, and the post office sees that residents have other nearby options in La Grange and Brookfield. A key reason why La Grange Park was on the list of cuts was that its revenue was around $573,000 in 2010. All post office locations that pulled in less than $600,000 last year are under review. But that doesn't mean imminent closure, Bassi stressed. Top of Form
Currently, only a few employees remain to operate window services at the La Grange Park branch. About a year and half ago, delivery operations were moved to the La Grange branch.