St. Pete Beach Post Office remains closed months after hurricanes
The Brief
The St. Pete Beach Post Office remains closed months after Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
USPS says all operations have been moved from the St. Pete Beach Post Office to the Gulfwinds Post Office on 22nd Avenue South.
Residents say they are frustrated because sending and receiving mail has become more difficult.
ST. PETE BEACH, Fla. - Six months after the storms, residents in St. Pete Beach are still without a post office, and it still remains unknown when it will reopen.
Crews are currently fixing the damage left by Hurricanes Helene and Milton at the Corey Avenue location. Plumbers were there Monday, and painters were there this past weekend.
What they're saying
A sign on the door says, "Please do not enter," telling customers it's closed because of the hurricanes.
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"This is the one we go to for everything," said Jeanie Macpherson, a St. Pete snowbird. "I'm just hoping it'll open back up; we don't like going to the one on 66th. There's not much parking, and it's just so crowded. It's forcing us to go to UPS all the time. We have to pay more to mail letters there, but that's what we're doing."
Macpherson said other snowbirds and residents also miss the convenience of the Corey Avenue location.
"If you want to go in and get some envelopes, or just get some stamps, or just go mail something, or mail your taxes out, it's more handy. Or I can just walk down; I don't have to drive to it," Macpherson said.
"Everything is going too slow, way too slow. Getting permits, getting people to do it; it has just been a sad situation," Macpherson said.
The other side
According to the Pinellas County Property Appraiser records, the post office was issued a permit at the end of December.
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A United States Postal Service spokesperson said they've moved all operations for the St. Pete Beach Post Office to the Gulfwinds location on 22nd Avenue South in St. Petersburg.
A spokesperson wouldn't say the extent of the damage but did send a statement:
"The safety and well-being of postal customers and employees is a priority for the Postal Service. The St. Pete Beach Post Office is a leased facility, and we are continuing to work with the landlord to quickly resolve all facility-related issues and resume service as soon as possible. A final timeline for completion of work is not available at this time, but this remains an area of intense focus for local postal leaders. The Postal Service will continue to provide updates as soon as additional information becomes available. We thank our valued customers for their continued patience."
People can still mail letters from the blue boxes nearby. Staff pick those up daily, USPS said.
The Source
FOX 13's Kailey Tracy collected the information in this story.
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