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RUMORS CLAIM GAS PRICES MAY PROMPT CHANGES IN POSTAL SERVICE
By Bill McLaughlin
For many people in area senior residential developments, the little post office in the Holiday City mini-mall is a special place.
Older Americans, especially, value the service they get for holiday packages and every day snail mail. So, when a rumor started that the minimall post office would be closed in a cost-savings measure, patrons took umbrage.
A petition campaign began with the goal of presenting the signatures of residents of the Holiday Heights, Silver Ridge and Holiday City senior communities to the mail service.
"I think we have to be proactive in this," said Art Dieffenbach, president of the Holiday City South Homeowner's Association. "We will bring this up at the next Berkeley Council meeting (July 22) and ask that they get behind our effort."
Dieffenbach said another rumored issue that would affect the community is the cessation of service by the mobile postal unit that goes into residential developments on a weekly basis, selling postage stamps and envelopes.
"Losing that would be a catastrophe for seniors," Dieffenbach said. "It would put 5,000 seniors in cars heading for downtown Toms River. Do you really want to add to the congestion? Especially downtown, where you can't make a left out of the post office, but you know they will."
The downtown Toms River post office is the nearest full service center, but one off Route 37 on Union Avenue in Lakehurst or another on Route 9 in Bayville might be less-traveled alternative routes.
Dieffenbach said retired postal workers living in the senior communities first heard the rumor and claimed to get confirmation from former colleagues still employed by the service.
But last week, a postal service spokesperson said the closure was simply a rumor, but given the rise in gas prices, anything was possible.
When reached for comment Monday, Toms River postmaster Frank Papasso said there would be one change at the mini-mall postal center: it would open at 8:30 a.m. daily rather than 8 from now on.
The local postmaster said the U.S. Postal Service is always looking for ways to economize and save time and energy, especially now that the price of gasoline has nearly doubled in two years.
"Gas prices have definitely had an effect on us," Papasso said. "We are the largest civilian (automotive) fleet in the world."
Papasso said there may be some adjustments to delivery routes to prevent "dead-heading" or driving unnecessary or overlapping distances within a delivery route.
While eliminating Saturday delivery was kicked around years ago during the fuel embargo of 1973-74, Papasso said he hasn't heard a word about it.
"(Saturday delivery) is something not decided on the local level," he said. "If there is a discussion about it, we haven't been told. Personally, I don't believe it's under consideration at this time. But, this energy crisis is beginning to affect everything, the way we all do business."
Papasso said the U.S. Postal Service spent $1.7 billion on gasoline for its delivery vehicles last year, and gas costs are up $170 million yearover year so far.
Papasso said he can't understand how rumors like this start, but right now that's what they are, he claimed.
Any major change in postal service will be given ample scrutiny by postal patrons before it would take effect.
"You can't rule anything out in the future," he concluded. "We all hope things will turn around."
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