1. United States
2. Pa.
3. Letter

I recently read your comments in the Daily Local News regarding the fire at the Airport Road Post Office and its impact on local postal services and the upcoming general election. I appreciate your attention to ensuring that every Chester County voter has access to timely and efficient mail service, particularly as we prepare for an election with a high volume of mail-in ballots. While I share your concerns about the service disruptions caused by the closure, I would like to highlight the potential of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Processing and Distribution Center in Tredyffrin Township to handle this shift in operations. This facility was previously the primary sorting center for our region until it was consolidated in 2013 as part of the U.S. Postal Service’s cost-cutting measures. According to the USPS Office of Inspector General (OIG) audit report (Report Number NO-AR-14-006), the consolidation moved processing functions to the Wilmington, DE, and Philadelphia, PA, facilities, which resulted in cost savings but left Southeastern with adequate machine capacity and floor space. Given this capacity and its proven track record, I believe the Southeastern facility could play a critical role in managing the redistribution of election-related mail during the Airport Road closure. If the Postal Service were to temporarily reinstate some operations at Southeastern, it could help mitigate delays and ensure the timely delivery of ballots. I fully support your advocacy for improved retail operations at alternative facilities like the Gay Street Post Office, as long wait times and confusion about operating hours are genuine issues that need resolution. Ensuring that USPS websites and signage reflect up-to-date information is essential to providing reliable service. However, I respectfully disagree with the characterization of the Airport Road closure as being "critically important" to the integrity of the election process. While the fire has certainly created challenges, the Chester County Government’s collaboration with the USPS and the robust mail-in ballot drop box program are already filling the gap to ensure voters have access to a variety of options to submit their ballots securely and on time. With these solutions in place and the Southeastern facility's capacity, I am confident that mail-in ballot distribution and collection will remain uninterrupted. Thank you for your continued leadership on behalf of our community. I appreciate your efforts to engage with the USPS and other stakeholders, and I remain hopeful that together we can find solutions that uphold the service standards we all expect and rely on.