MENTONE – The future of the post office in Mentone may be determined by its residents.
Monday night, Mentone Town Council President Tim Croy said the United States Postal Service is requesting that everyone in town fill out and return a survey.
Croy received his copy of the letter and survey in the mail.
The results of the survey will be discussed at a meeting at 4 p.m. Oct. 15 at the Bell Memorial Public Library.
According to a letter to post office customers from Judy Bays, post office review coordinator, the Postal Service has established a review process for certain post offices known as the “POST Plan.” The Mentone post office was among offices evaluated under the POST Plan criteria.
The Postal Service is now soliciting community input through the survey to help determine the best course of action for providing postal services to Mentone.
The letter further states, “After receiving the results of this survey, the Postal Service will examine the responses and, unless the community has a strong preference (more than 60 percent) for conducting a discontinuance study for the Mentone Post Office and establishing one of the additional sources of services ... the Postal Service intends to maintain the Mentone Post Office with six hours of window service each weekday. Current Saturday window service hours and access to delivery receptacles will not change as a result of the POST Plan realignment of weekday window service hours.”
A final decision regarding the Mentone Post Office will not be made until after the Oct. 15 public meeting.
“Ultimately, it’s up to the state, but they are requesting public feedback,” Croy told the council.
The customer survey has four questions. The first is for the respondents’ mailing address, and the fourth is for additional comments.
The second question asks residents to select an alternative (of four possible) which they most prefer.
The first alternative is to keep the office open but with realigned weekday window service hours. The second is to conduct a discontinuance study for the office and provide roadside mailbox delivery. The third choice is to conduct a discontinuance study for the office and find a suitable alternative location operated by a contractor, usually at a local business. The last choice is to conduct a discontinuance study for the office and relocate post office box service to a nearby post office.
For the third survey question, it asks respondents to indicate their preferences for weekday window service hours if window service hours are changed to six hours per weekday.
