USPS postpones closure of Cape mail-processing center

Two years ago on Feb. 23, the United States Postal Service confirmed it intended to close Cape Girardeau's Richard G. Wilson Processing and Distribution Facility, saving the agency about $3.8 million annually and eliminating about 100 positions.

The facility and its workers still are serving their purpose today, and their future got a bit brighter last month when the USPS announced the postponement of the second phase of its plan to consolidate and close mail-processing facilities, the Cape Girardeau facility being one of them.

The Postal Service on Jan. 17 filed a notice in the Federal Register, the daily journal of the U.S. government, that announced "the postponement of the implementation date for the revised service standards that were scheduled to take effect on Feb. 1, as part of Phase II of the Network Rationalization initiative," according to a statement issued Jan. 23 by the USPS.

Richard Watkins, U.S. Postal Service regional spokesman, referred questions to the issued statement.

Closing the Cape Girardeau mail processing center was part of the Postal Service's plan to close more than 250 mail-processing centers nationwide in two phases. The Cape Girardeau facility was not included in the first phase, which was to close 140 mail-processing centers by February 2013.

Operations to sort mail collected in Southeast Missouri were moved from the Cape Girardeau facility to a larger facility in St. Louis later in 2013. Operations to sort mail destined for Southeast Missouri were next in line to move to St. Louis.

Complaints of slow mail service, deliveries after dark, lack of postmarks among others have rolled in since originating mail operations were moved to St. Louis.

Sally Davidow, communications director with the American Postal Workers Union, said in an email to the Southeast Missourian that the postponement is good news for postal employees and postal customers because employees' jobs won't be moved to other locations and overnight delivery of mail, medicine and packages won't be eliminated, as they were going to be in the second phase.

"Unfortunately, however, mail service has already been seriously degraded across the country because of the closure of so many mail processing centers," Davidow said.

The timeline of the postponement, and whether it means processing operations will be moved back to the Cape Girardeau facility, are unclear.

The new implementation date for the second phase will be announced in the Federal Register at least 90 days before it takes effect, according to the USPS statement.

Greg Davidson, president of American Postal Workers Local Union 4088, said local postal employees now are breathing a little easier knowing their jobs are safe -- at least for a while.

"We're cautiously optimistic about this," Davidson said Monday.

Davidson said he believes management is realizing consolidating the plants is not working, and he hopes they will "totally re-evaluate" future plans.

Davidson also is holding onto the hope that the processing center's closure will fall off the radar altogether.

"We hope common sense prevails here," he said.

A message for Gail Hendrix, manager of the Kansas City-based Mid-America District of USPS, was not returned as of Monday afternoon.

ashedd@semissourian.com

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Pertinent address:

475 Kell Farm Drive, Cape Girardeau, MO