The Post Office is attempting to determine if efficiency could be increased by consolidating some mail processing operations.
Post Office Consolidation Plan Promises One Day Service to Bay Area
Loss of Half of First Class Mail Volume Causes Local Change Plans
December 4, 2010
By: Dave Rogers
The U.S. Postal Service's AMP (area mail processing) feasibility study for consolidation of Saginaw operations in Pontiac calls for overnight delivery in the 486 and 487 ZIP codes.
About 100 persons, said to be mainly postal employees, turned out at a recent public meeting held by the Post Office at Saginaw Valley State University.
There were protests about proposals to cut 46 employees at Saginaw from Saginaw public officials, including Councilman William G. Scharffe, who suggested Saginaw as a Metroplex center instead of Pontiac.
The Post Office is attempting to determine if efficiency could be increased by consolidating some mail processing operations from the Saginaw plant into the Michigan Metroplex plant located in Pontiac.
Savings of an estimated $941,000 per year are projected with the shift to the Pontiac Metroplex, according to officials. The nationwide Post Office deficit is estimated at $8.5 billion.
Nancy Rittenhouse, Post Office official, said the current economic downturn and continued Internet diversion has led to a drastic decline in mail volume, with the loss of almost 26 billion pieces this past year alone. As a result, the Postal Service is not receiving enough revenue to sustain the cost of its processing and delivery network.
Ms. Rittenhouse promised no change in delivery time or zip codes under the new plan, if it is implemented. Twenty-four-hour delivery would be assured in the Bay-Midland-Saginaw area, she said.
Some local high schools have reportedly begun working with private mail firms to distribute their mail because of reduced costs, according to sources who attended the meeting.
Customers complained that the Midland Post Office, which was doing about $500,000 a year in revenue, is now closed. Postal customers are driving about a mile and a half to post their letters or to buy stamps, they complained.
The reason for the study is to determine whether consolidation of mail processing operations will help eliminate excess capacity and make more efficient use of facility space, staffing, equipment and transportation, according to official Post Office sources.
"We have more equipment, personnel and facilities than we need to process a declining volume of mail. The Postal Service must realign its network to match its resources with mail volume," said Ms. Rittinhouse, Acting Greater Michigan District Manager, U.S. Postal Service. "Consolidating some postal operations and placing our people where we need them makes logical business sense given the economic realities. It would be fiscally irresponsible not to do so."
If the new study supports consolidation, a public meeting will be held to enable members of the community to ask questions and provide feedback. Community input will be considered before a decision is made as to whether or not the proposed consolidation should be implemented.
The Postal Service is soliciting public input as part of the process. All comments will be fully considered, the agency says. The public may submit comments to:
CONSUMER AFFAIRS MANAGER
GREATER MICHIGAN DISTRICT
PO BOX 999631
GRAND RAPIDS, MI 48599-9631
###