By Karissa Minn
kminn@salisburypost.com
EAST SPENCER – The United States Postal Service will hold a public hearing this afternoon about a plan to reduce hours at the East Spencer post office.
The hearing will take place at 2 p.m. today at the post office located at 209 S. Long St.
Town residents were sent surveys asking for their input into different options for the East Spencer office, postal service spokesman George Maffett said Monday. Those include reducing service hours, closing the office and offering alternate delivery, closing the office and providing alternate P.O. Box service or moving the office to a partnering local business.
At today’s meeting, local management will share the results of the survey and answer questions. According to its public notice, the Postal Service will not make a final decision until after the public meeting.
Maffett said local residents also will be asked which hours they would most like the office to be open.
“We’re looking to match the workload to the work hours,” Maffett said. “We’re certainly in a financial crisis here. We’re looking for ways to reduce the financial burden that we’re facing, and at the same time, be responsible to communities and be part of communities without closing down.”
He said the post office should not be shut down, unless the East Spencer community strongly prefers an option that involves closing it.
According to the public notice, the options that the Postal Service is considering include:
• Keep the office open, based on actual office workload. In the case of East Spencer Post Office, hours would be reduced from 6.5 hours each weekday to 6 hours per weekday. Current Saturday hours will not change as a result of POST Plan and access to your delivery receptacles will not be impacted by POST Plan.
• Conduct a discontinuance (closure) study for the office and offer roadside mailbox delivery. Retail and delivery service would be provided through a rural carrier. Mail delivery points will be established and customers can purchase most postal services through the carrier or other alternate access points.
• Conduct a discontinuance (closure) study for the office and find a suitable alternative location operated by a contractor, usually at a local business. When businesses are found that meet the criteria, these establishments are contracted through the U.S. Postal Service and offer stamps and flat rate products with service hours generally more expansive than what the local Post Office will be able to offer.
• Conduct a discontinuance (closure) study for the office and provide P.O. Box service via another nearby Post Office and relocate P.O. Box delivery to that Post Office.