Pattye Benson

Community Matters

The Closing of Southeastern Post Office — Can that be Possible?

I received the following press release from State Rep. Paul Drucker’s office that suggests that the Southeastern Post Office may be on the chopping block to be closed. This is the post office that I regularly use and my the length of the customer lines, it would suggest that many residents use this post office. The press release says the post office system is consolidating — why, as a budget cut? Like I am doing, I suggest that you take 5 min. and send an email against the idea to close Southeastern Post Office.

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to help keep local post office open

The United States Postal Service is currently exploring the possibility of consolidating some of its mail processing operations in Philadelphia, the Lehigh Valley and surrounding areas.

Under this plan, the USPS is conducting a study as to whether the post office located at 1000 West Valley Road in Wayne, formally known as the Southeastern, PA Processing and Distribution Center, needs to stay operational.

I know that many of you use this location for your postal needs, and I would like you to have an opportunity to share your input. The USPS is currently soliciting public comment as part of the study process. The public’s comments will be thoroughly considered in any final determination.

Please send your comments to:
Donna Saulino
Customer Relations Coordinator
Philadelphia Metro Division – USPS
215-863-5009

donna.m.saulino@usps.gov

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16 Comments

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  1. Pattye,
    SERIOUSLY? You mean the huge post office in the TE section of Wayne back where all those office complexes, SEI, etc, etc are?

    How can that be? They serve SO many people and businesses!

    1. Yes, the very large post office in Tredyffrin Twp. I’m thinking that they would close the retail part of the post office and still use the back for processing. From my house, I literally would drive past 3 post offices that are closer (or at least no further) to go to Southeastern PO. Doesn’t matter what time of day you in Southeastern, they are always busy but . . . the lines move very efficiently. And you are right, all the area businesses use that post office. Furthermore, if you take your mail to Berwyn, Devon, Malvern, etc. you can add a day or two to delivery time because it has to filter through Southeastern. And some of these little post offices have absolutely no parking whereas even in tax season, with a little patience you can find a spot at Southeastern. It’s like someone decided what would be the worse postal decision in southeastern Pennsylvania and bingo — close Southeastern PO! Now if the postal officials are further talking about consolidating the ‘processing’ portion and closing Southeastern altogether, than I guess we’ll know that the government has really lost it!

      1. Patty,

        As I read the notice, you have it backwards. They are looking to close the ‘mail processing operations’. That is everything, except the retail operation.

        I have mixed feelings. I like to use it, especially to drop letters off as late at 9pm and have them go out. Recently I find that the lines are always long and they really don’t have a sense of great customer service. I find the customer service at Devon is great.

        If the USPS feels that their business has changed so that they can process mail more efficiently elsewhere, who are we to argue. They are losing more and more business every year, so something has to give.

  2. The press release sounds to me as if they are considering shutting the ENTIRE facility down – although it is not completely clear.

    Clearly USPS has some $$ issues. Consolidating the regional distribution centers would certainly cut significant costs, shutting the front lobby to retail – not so much.

    To echo what others have said, that is a massive property, with a lot of jobs, and enormous infrastructure inside.

  3. UGH! And if I’m not mistaken, the gated office complex directly across the street is a division of Vanguard, that moved there specifically to cut their mail transport costs. Several times a day Vanguard employees wheel over those big tubs of outgoing mail for processing, no truck required. Closing Seatheastern P.O. would be a shame!

  4. Thanks for sharing this information with us Pattye. Like the planned closing of military bases, perhaps it’s a flare sent up to see who responds. I would imagine that like many other businesses out here in the suburbs, the site suffers from a lack of public transportation for employees. Likewise, does anyone know if they own that land or is it leased?

    Did some work for the USPS a long time ago and learned one thing that sort of guarantees they will always struggle with cost management — there is a federal law that requires a single price for first class mail. The USPS cannot differentiate between mailing from Southeastern to Wayne vs. Southeastern to California when you mail your Christmas cards. Not sure if that still applies for packages, but I believe mailing is still pretty much costed out by weight and size, not distance. No other delivery service is bound by that requirement.

    But if Kathie J. is correct and Vanguard moved there to specifically save costs, I would imagine that the Vanguard response and other local businesses as well would be more significant. I would imagine it would affect many businesses that are specifically located in that office area because of the bulk service center / rail spur etc.

  5. Off topic, but when can we start to seriously discuss privatizing the postal service. The Southeastern Post Office would be my main argument. Every time I set foot in that place there is a line of 10 people and it takes a minimum of 15 minutes to receive service of any kind.

    Yesterday I walked into a line of 12 people and 1 teller at lunch time. After 5 minutes, the line had not budged so i turned around and walked out. Considering that lunch is probably the most busy time of the day, maybe it would be wise for the postal employees to take earlier or later lunch breaks. But why should they care?

  6. AGREE! Is it management? Union lunch rules? I think most of the employees I have encountered are nice. But it is clearly not a private enterprise now. Opens on the dot, not one second earlier. If I had a customer waiting, and it was 5 minutes before opening, I would open my door.

    It is mismanaged. Could be better. But it is a public service union, right? So they run the show. No pride of ownership, nothing.

      1. No. . .that is not why the Postal Service has money problems.

        Answer me this all of you: When was the last time you sat down and wrote a first class letter to anyone? I don’t mean the occasional Hallmark Card, but an actual letter to a friend or relative?

        USPS made most of its money off the first class stamp. E-Mail has killed the Postal Service.

        As for running it as a private business: If USPS were allowed to do that, then it would cut out universal service. There are places in the United States that FEDEX and UPS don’t go to. If USPS became a private business, then they would say goodbye to most towns in Montana, N. Dakota, Alaska and rural West Virginia.

  7. I use this facility at least once a week and do not want it to close. I agree some of the employees have a bad attitude, but others are wonderful – the guy who renewed our passports last month was so engaging!

    However, I am amazed at how few people use the automated kiosk – there is a rarely a line there, even when there are twenty people lined up for the main counter. It is so easy to use – it can handle most needs – and is an efficient and time-saving process. Why won’t people use it?

  8. Pattye:

    I admire your work on behalf of quality of life issues in Tredyffrin. However, here are a couple of counter-points in favor of closing the processing and distribution functions at that facility:

    The highest and best use of that site (22+) acres is no longer industrial. If it were upgraded to an office site, it would produce better jobs and better-paying jobs. Have you ever met a resident of Tredyffrin who works there – me neither! The lost postal jobs would be unfortunate, but not really a Tredyffrin issue, as most of their employees commute in from other municipalities.

    If the facility were in private hands, it would produce Real Estate Taxes for the township and school district. Currently, since it is Federally owned, the township receives not a single dollar of tax revenue from that site, yet we still plow the street, provide police and fire protection, etc.

    Lastly, as an office facility, we would virtually eliminate the large amount of truck traffic coming in and out of that site, with correspondingly fewer trucks on West Valley Road, Devon Park Drive, 202, etc.

    So here’s one vote for keeping the retail post office in one corner and re-developing the rest of the site and harvesting tax dollars!

  9. Maybe a short term concern, but what is the office vacancy rate in Tredyffrin? My initial thought is that we have enough office space, but I could be wrong. How about a private manufacturing plant, nicely landscaped where the property could be used to actually MAKE something useful, employ people, and collect real estate and other taxes?

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