A historic post office closed in thriving downtown Franklin. Here’s what the USPS said, what we know.

For nearly 100 years, Franklin residents have used the downtown Five Points Post Office.

That ended last month for the foreseeable future.

In a decision that many area residents — including former post office owner Jeff Nichols — describe as shocking for the affluent and growing area, the United States Postal Service will allow the downtown post office to close.

Nichols no longer resides in Franklin and chose not to renew his contract to operate the post office. Nichols said he alerted USPS in January of the decision. He assumed postal service would "start the ball rolling" and find another post office owner.

"They didn't. And we kind of scrambled for the month of June," Nichols said about alerting the public.

Most downtown Franklin businesses have P.O. boxes in the post office, Nichols added. Families have used the post office in the city-owned Five Points building — which was built in 1924 — for generations. Nearly 800 boxes were in use, he said, when the facility closed last month.

"Apparently (the USPS) has made the decision that it's not crucial,” Nichols said.

Nichols said Franklin’s main post office, located at 810 Oak Meadow Drive, "cannot handle that kind of numbers” from the hundreds of post office boxes that are closing.

"Not only is it going to be a problem because people can't just walk down the street and get their mail. They are sending people to other facilities that are not post offices,” Nichols said. "I hate it. I hate it for Franklin. I care because I love the history of that place."

City, Postal Service response

Franklin City Administrator Eric Stuckey said city officials are working to ensure a post office presence remains downtown.

“As the person who negotiated this agreement, I can tell you maintaining a postal operation was and is a top priority. It is a valuable service to the community, and we will be pushing to maintain it,” Stuckey said.

The city’s lease with FirstBank, which is also located in the building, requires the bank to make “best efforts” to maintain a postal operation at Five Points, Stuckey said.

In a statement issued Monday, the Postal Service described the contract postal units — like the Five Points location — as an “added convenience” for customers. The statement did not answer Tennessean questions asking why the Postal Service chose not to pursue another lease.

The USPS statement continued with the following: “The lessor chose not to renew the lease. In order to minimize disruptions to our valued customers, local postal management took steps to notify customers about the closure and provided them with options for their mailing needs. The Postal Service remains willing to work with local businesses in the area to explore viable options for another CPU.  Please note that customers may obtain full retail services at the Franklin Post Office located at 810 Oak Meadow Dr., Franklin, TN, which is approximately 2.9 miles from the Franklin Five Points CPU."

What local leaders are saying

Multiple citizens and downtown public figures have criticized the post office closing, particularly on social media, including Mindy Tate, the CEO of longtime community engagement nonprofit Franklin Tomorrow.

Franklin Alderman Patrick Baggett has also reached out to the USPS seeking answers.

"We continue to receive mixed communication regarding the Downtown Franklin Post Office closing," Baggett wrote in an email to the postal service. "It is imperative to the vibrancy of our Downtown business district to keep this Post Office open. Whether an official Post Office or a contracted location, it is essential that we keep this in operation."

"It is hard to understand how one of America’s most decorated historic downtown districts is being left behind by the USPS if this office closes," Baggett added.

Nichols described the post office as a “unique contract postal unit” that’s one of only a handful nationwide that has its own zip code.

Bari Beasley, CEO of the Heritage Foundation of Williamson County, recently released a statement on behalf of the longtime nonprofit dedicated to preserving the county's history. Included in the statement is the following:

"The Downtown Franklin Association with the Heritage Foundation have been monitoring the status of the Five Points Post Office since March of 2023. The possibility for the post office to be closed without a successful replacement operator was not announced by the postmaster until the first week of June, providing constituents with less than 30 days to move post boxes before it was said to close.

"It would be devastating to our historic downtown Franklin to lose the post office. We certainly are hopeful that someone will step up soon and commit to maintaining it."

Beasley said the Downtown Franklin Association, a division of the foundation, has continued discussions with USPS officials for months, including setting up possible post office ownership candidates with the Postal Service.

'It doesn't make sense'

Nichols took over ownership of the post office in 2020. At the time, 15 people total applied for the contract to run the Five Points location.

He heard a dozen people applied in recent months.

Nichols knows there’s interest in ownership and regular business at the location — so he doesn’t understand why the shuttering decision was made.

He noted that the Postal Service doesn’t pay the lease or the employees at the location.

"It doesn't make sense,” Nichols said. "It couldn't be a money issue."

History of building

The Five Points Post Office the first and only U.S. Post Office until 1991, according to the Heritage Foundation of Williamson County.

In addition to post office and bank space, the building previously served as a genealogy library, archives, and headquarters for the Heritage Foundation.

In 1991, the USPS moved its facility. Afterward, the Five Points Post Office was recognized by the National Register of Historic Place as one of the 11 most endangered sites in America before it was purchased a year later.

In 2014, FirstBank leased and built out their portion of the building after the Heritage Foundation moved. The contracted post office continued.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: The post office closed in downtown Franklin, TN. Here’s what we know.