By Tricia Pursell
MIDDLEBURG — The U.S. Postal Service’s penny-pinching has hit the county seat of Snyder County.
The Middleburg post office on Monday cut its window hours by closing for lunch from 11 to noon, a move meant to save money as the location copes with fewer customers.
The decision to reduce time for purchases at the window of the Snyder County mail center is reflective of a trend at post offices across the nation.
“This was determined through a careful review of window transactions and customer visits throughout the day,” said Ray Daiutolo Sr., of the postal service’s communications office.
Similar reviews have been done at other postal branches across the country, he said. A survey of other Valley post offices on Monday found no others planning similar cuts in service.
Middleburg Postmaster Donna Bickel said she consulted with other area postal officials who agreed that closing for lunch might have little effect on customer service.
Purchases at the window are usually slower between 11 a.m. and noon, Bickel said, just before the regular lunch hour.
“We looked at offices around us, to make sure we weren’t all closed at the same time, to try to inconvenience customers as little as possible,” she said.
The postal service as a whole, Daiutolo said, is experiencing difficult economical times, just as many other businesses are, and more customers are accessing services through alternate channels, such as the postal service Web site, and receiving stamps by mail or fax.
“There is a myriad of ways people can do business with us now,” he said. “(The Web site) is the post office that is never closed. When people find out about that, they kind of like the convenience of it.”
The U.S. Postal Service finished the fiscal year, which ended in September, with a reported $3.8 billion operating loss.
As a result, postmasters were asked to evaluate the activity at their windows on a regular basis to become more cost-effective, Daiutolo said.
“If they show over time a period of inactivity, they may be able to justify a request to modify their retail hours,” he added.
For the most part, he said, these hour reductions are done without cutting employees, but by adjusting their work schedules. Bickel said no staff cuts are planned.
Middleburg Borough Council President Donald Zechman Jr. said the post office is used heavily by courthouse workers and various banks and businesses in the area, and he does not see any threat of its closing.
“We have some big users,” he said. “They always seem busy when I go in.”
The Middleburg post office will remain open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to noon Saturday.
