New post office opening delayed

Ashley Williamson

Come rain, snow, sleet or construction problems, nothing will stop the new Mount
Pleasant Post Office building from opening Sept. 10.

The post office was originally scheduled to open Tuesday, but was pushed back
a week because of the time it takes to move everything from the old building to
the new building, Mount Pleasant Postmaster Mark Yallup said.

Located on the corner of Pickard and Main streets, the new office will replace
the existing post office, which was built in the 1960s and no longer meets city
demands.

“We’re going to open next Monday, and do an open house later when we
get settled so people can see the new facility,” he said.

The relocation delay is not the fault of the contractor, Alta Construction Co.,
5000 E. Airport Road, who has remained on schedule since construction began.

“The building has been turned over to us. There are a few little things for
the construction company to finish, but we’re getting it all ready on our
end,” Yallup said.

Mayflower Transit Agency, 200 Walnut St., will help with the Saturday move.

The new 28,000-square-foot building will replace the old 9,000-square-foot facility.
The number of parking spaces will increase from eight to 42 customer spaces, plus
additional parking for employees who currently have to park on the street.

Other features of the new building include open merchandising and automated equipment.
Two new custodians were the only additional employees hired for the new facility.

Yallup said most employees are excited about relocating to the new building.

“I took a few over there Friday and Saturday,” he said. “They were
in awe of the size of the new facility and the way it looks. They can’t wait
to get over there.”

Yallup said the post office employees are trying to make the move easy for everybody,
especially residents. He will post notices on the doors this week, and all the
customers with P.O. boxes will receive a letter with information on getting a
new key.

Estimated cost for the new building is $3.3 million, paid by the post office capital
fund.

The old building is leased through a lawyer in Detroit, but the post office will
own the new building.

Yallup is unsure whether the building’s owner will sublease the facility
or just cut the lease with the Mount Pleasant Post Office short, which still has
a year and a half left.

So far, getting out of the lease has posed no problems for the post office, Yallup
said.

“I haven’t heard anything; that’s handled by our area office in
Chicago,” he said.