Latest news with #ContractPostalUnits
Newsweek
25-07-2025
- Business
- Newsweek
USPS Closing Locations in Multiple States: What We Know
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The United States Postal Service (USPS) is closing several of its contract post offices across several states. Why It Matters Numerous independent postal units are closing down after receiving notice from the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), according to local reports. Contract postal units (CPUs) are independent businesses under contract to the USPS to provide postal products and services to the public. Such contracts can be terminated with 120 days notice from the USPS - but many sites impacted by the decision have warned the closures could negatively impact the local community and their businesses. Some have been operating in their local community for decades. Newsweek has contacted the USPS for comment and a full list of nationwide closures via email. What To Know While confirmation has not been given directly to Newsweek on which sites will be closing down, reports have emerged from local news outlets in Arizona, Illinois, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, and Washington. According to the USPS, termination notices have been given "in some cases where nearby post offices that are operated by the Postal Service are capable of serving the community directly," reads a statement given to Fox 10. One CPU located in Rankos Stadium Pharmacy in Tacoma, Washington, which is due to close at the end of September, has organized a petition in a bid to stop the closure. File photo: A USPS logo on a mail box. File photo: A USPS logo on a mail box. GETTY In March, former U.S. Postmaster Louis DeJoy said in a letter to Congress that several cost-cutting measures had been agreed with Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) officials, but this did not include the closures of CPU sites. The independent federal agency has struggled financially in recent years and, in 2021, launched a 10-year "Delivering for America" plan aimed at restoring the Postal Service's financial stability and ensuring consistent service to its 169 million delivery addresses nationwide. In the fiscal year ending September 2024, the agency reported a $9.5 billion loss, an increase from the $6.5 billion net loss recorded in 2023. What People Are Saying A representative for the USPS told Fox 10: "The United States Postal Service sometimes contracts with suppliers to host Contract Postal Units, or CPUs, within a retail establishment, operated by the supplier or supplier's employees. Through these contracts, CPUs can provide communities with additional access to some postal services, but they are independent businesses not directly operated by the Postal Service. Under the CPU contract terms, the Postal Service and CPU operators both agreed that either party can terminate the contract upon giving 120 days' notice. We have exercised our right to do so in some cases where nearby post offices that are operated by the Postal Service are capable of serving the community directly. Doing so better enables us to fulfill our commitment to serve our communities with efficient and reliable access to retail services." Rankos Stadium Pharmacy, in a statement on its petition page, wrote: "We do NOT accept termination of our agreement. We serve people who need our mailing and postal services and we are committed to decreasing all barriers to equitable access to our care and the services we provide. This is a SERVICE. We do it to serve our community. We are committed to assuring all concerns are addressed and people with any access issues, limitations, anyone in the local area, has access to a local, postal station." What Happens Next Reports indicate many of the closures will happen at the end of the business day on September 30. Are you the owner of a CPU that has had its contract with the USPS terminated? Get in touch at
Chicago Tribune
07-06-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
‘This came out of nowhere': Winfield post office closing Sept. 30
The Winfield postal substation will be stamped closed on Sept. 30. Notice of contract termination was emailed by a U.S. Postal Service official earlier this week to Amy Culver, the customer service agent for the post office, and George and Diane Smith, owners of the building, which shares space with U-Haul Rentals. Susan W. Wright, Strategic Communications Specialist for the U.S. Postal Corporate Communications, when asked the reason behind the termination, responded with the following email: 'The Postal Service sometimes contracts with retailers to host Contract Postal Units, or CPUs, within a retail establishment, operated by the retailer's employee. CPUs can provide communities with expanded access to postal services, but they are not operated by the Postal Service. In all instances, CPU agreements may be terminated by either party upon 120 days' written notice.' 'In the case of the Winfield CPU at 8380 E. 109th Ave., Crown Point, the Postal Service determined the nearby postal facilities are able to fully serve the community and the CPU was no longer needed.' Wright, in her email, said she had no information about changes to be made in the Leroy Post Office, 14120 Elkhart St., located south of Winfield in Leroy. The Winfield postal substation was opened in April 2021 and before that was housed for many years inside the former Fagen Pharmacy, now CVS Pharmacy, 10809 Randolph St., before Fagen's closed in 2017. The town of Winfield and nearby unincorporated Lakes of the Four Seasons, which use a Crown Point ZIP code, have mail delivered through the Crown Point Post Office on Summit Street in Crown Point. Crown Point Postmaster Rhianna Derolf could not be reached for comment. The Smiths, with whom the contract is held, said the termination email came from Shaun D. LaBay, a contracting officer for the United States Postal Service in Aurora, Colorado. He referred all questions to the postal service communications services in Washington, D.C. Culver and the Smiths said they were blindsided by the email notifying them of the 120-day termination since they thought all was well. 'This came out of nowhere,' Culver said. The Smiths said they agreed to house the post office substation and sign a contract with U.S. Postal officials as a way to give back to the Winfield and Lakes of the Four Seasons area, where they have lived for close to 40 years. The feedback the Smiths have received from the community over the last four years has been great. 'We can't walk down the street without someone saying thank you to us…The town has been good to us and this is our payback to them,' George Smith said. The Smiths receive no rental income from the U.S. Postal Service and only a small percentage back from such things as sale of stamps, which they have to purchase from postal officials. Town Council President Zack Beaver and Winfield Township Trustee Cody Reynolds voiced disappointment about the closure. Both Beaver and Reynolds said their attempts to reach out to the Crown Point Post Office were unsuccessful, as were calls made by Post-Tribune. 'It's a shame it's being closed because it serves thousands of residents,' Beaver said. Reynolds credited his predecessor, former Winfield Township Trustee Paulette Skinner, for pushing to get the substation reopened after it was closed in 2018 after Fagen Pharmacy closed. On June 26, 2018, Skinner's office sent state officials a petition with the signatures of 2,548 residents asking to restore postal services. 'Given the township's history on this we are actively engaged,' Reynolds said. Reynolds issued a statement from the Winfield Township Trustee's Office, which in part, condemned the termination action and even addressed the possibility of the closure of another nearby post office located in Leroy. 'The Winfield Township Board and I are vehemently opposed to the closure of one or both of these facilities. If this is allowed to happen, these decisions will leave a 25.5-square-mile area without service from a local post office. Residents would be forced to travel 5 or more miles away just to find the next closest facility, Reynolds said in his statement. 'We also have to take into account that both of these substations may also be the closest facilities for a number of people who live outside of Winfield Township, particularly those in Porter and Union Townships in Porter County. Ultimately, this decision could end up affecting almost 25,000 residents.' Reynolds said he is already communicating with other local, state and federal officials to do all officials can do to reach a positive outcome for the community. 'As more information becomes available, we will work to keep the members of our community fully informed on this issue,' Reynolds said. Any questions can be directed to either the Winfield Township Trustee's Office, at 219-663-7027 or the Crown Point branch of the U.S. Postal Service at 219-663-0062.
