Public meeting set on post office review, initial results shared

Jana Wiersema, The News-Gazette, Champaign-Urbana, Ill.
·3 min read

Feb. 27—CHAMPAIGN — The U.S. Postal Service has set a date for a public input meeting as it continues to review the northwest Champaign post office and considers transferring some of the site's mail processing operations to other offices.

The meeting will be held on March 12 at 6 p.m. at the YMCA of the University of Illinois, 1001 Wright St. in Champaign.

The Postal Service is conducting a facility review of the Champaign Processing and Distribution Center (P&DC) at 2001 N. Mattis Ave. According to a public notice from the agency, a summary of the facility review will be posted at about.usps.com at least one week prior to the event.

"This will be an in-person meeting only," said Tim Norman with USPS Strategic Communications. "There will be a presentation and then comments and questions will be taken from the public."

He added that those who are not able to attend can submit comments at surveymonkey.com/r/mpfr-champaign-il. All written comments must be received by March 27.

"The public's input will be considered prior to a final decision," Norman said.

USPS's meeting notice states that their initial findings support keeping the Champaign P&DC open and modernizing it as a Local Processing Center (LPC) "with simplified processes and standardized layouts."

The agency describes LPCs as "critical nodes" in its end-to-end network model that provide a connection between Regional Processing and Distribution Centers and Sorting and Delivery Centers.

"The facility will offer expanded and streamlined package processing capabilities in the local market and new workplace amenities for USPS employees," Postal Service officials said. "Additionally, the business case supports transferring some mail processing operations to the South Suburban P&DC in Bedford Park IL and the Chicago South Regional Processing and Distribution Center (RPDC) in Forest Park IL."

The agency added that retail and other services provided by the local P&DC will not change, and delivery times for mail "should not change throughout this review."

"The evaluation is a first step in the Postal Service review and investment process in this facility and will not result in this facility's closure or career employee layoffs," officials said.

However, some community members and postal workers have expressed concern about the potential changes and held a rally in early February to raise awareness about the situation.

"We're concerned about the mail being delayed even more than it already is," said Barbara Bridges, an employee at the Champaign P&DC, in a previous interview. "We're already experiencing staffing shortages, and if our mail is sent up to Chicago for processing, it's only going to delay the mail further."

Bridges, who does not represent the post office or the local chapter of the American Postal Workers Union, also claimed that many local postal workers will be displaced if the local facility becomes a Local Processing Center or a Sorting and Delivery Center.

"If we lose our outgoing mail to Chicago, many of our sorting machines will be dismantled," she said. "Many of our techs, clerks and mail handlers will have to move to other cities to keep their jobs, or else be forced out of their chosen craft into other roles."

A list of facilities undergoing reviews — along with related documents such as initial findings and public-meeting notices — is available at about.usps.com/what/strategic-plans/mpfr/welcome.htm.