Rep. Rick Larsen, WA-02, today called on the U.S. Postal Service to maintain operations at the Everett Area Mail Processing Facility. In a letter to Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe, Larsen said the loss of service and jobs in western Washington would be a blow to the region, and called into question some of the cost-savings the Postal Service expects to gain from closing the facility.
The Postal Service is holding a public meeting at 6 p.m. on Thursday at the Snohomish County PUD Building at 2320 California St. in Everett.
The full text of Larsen’s letter follows:
November 9, 2011
The Honorable Patrick R. Donahoe Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer United States Postal Service 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW Washington DC 20260-0010
Dear Mr. Postmaster General:
I am writing to share with you my support to maintain the operation of the Everett Area Mail Processing Facility in Everett, Washington.
I recently visited this facility and was impressed with the professionalism, tenacious work ethic, and commitment to excellence of the employees there. The approximately 310 employees manage more than 1 million pieces of mail daily. The loss of this facility would render many of these dedicated people unemployed or forced to relocate from their homes.
In addition to the troubling employment loss, the level of service to the region would greatly diminish should this facility close. Losing the single day turnaround of letters in and around western Washington would be a blow to the high standards of the United States Postal Service. I believe this would also put the USPS at a competitive disadvantage regionally because customers may turn to other sources for single day turnaround needs.
After reviewing the USPS’s Area Mail Processing study, some of the estimated cost savings calculations remain unclear. I believe that some of the calculations only address the cost savings of the facility fully closing. It did not appear to make considerations for the cost shift of processing the mail at another facility; did not take into account the possibility of the facility remaining open as a hub only and the maintenance and custodial costs associated with that portion remaining open; or the possibility that other assets may be moved to this location. The true costs associated with the considered closure remain nebulous.
While it may be outside the scope of the Area Mail Processing study, I am also concerned about the costs to the western Washington region should the facility close. Hundreds of thousands of residents and businesses depend on this facility for efficient turnaround. The full costs of the loss of this resource to the community do not seem to have been adequately taken into account.
I urge you to consider these factors and possibilities, which should support a decision to maintain operations at the Everett Area Mail Processing Facility.
Sincerely,
Rick Larsen United States Congressman Washington State, 2nd District
