Berkeley’s Letter to the USPS Regarding Use of the Berkeley Post Office Finally Sent!

October 20th, 2015

Mr. Tom Samra
Vice President, Facilities
United States Postal Service
475 L’Enfant Plaza SW
Washington, DC 20260-1101

Dear Mr. Samra,

At a meeting of the Berkeley City Council on June 30th, 2015 the Council approved a resolution regarding the Main Post Office at 2000 Allston Way in downtown Berkeley (attached), and requested that City offices begin discussions on the following issues with the appropriate staff from the United States Postal Service (USPS):

1. The return of postal services to 2000 Allston Way, inluding package pickup of undelivered mail, bulk mail drop-off, and improvements to wait times at this location;
2. The greening of the Berkeley Postal Service, including the return of distribution routes to the downtown facility to save fuel and time, the installation of roof solar panels, and replacing the fleet with fuel-efficient vehicles;
3. The on-going maintenance and preservation of the building, including needed repairs and an assessment of its structural integrity;
4. The preservation of the landscaping and garden along Milvia Street;
5. Potential best uses of space inside the building that is not needed for postal services, including community uses along with revenue-generating tenancies;
6. USPS pilot of a program for postal banking, as suggested by the Postal Service Inspector General’s report, advocating for and using our locale as an incubator site and hub for a test rollout of the service.

Please contact me either via e-mail at Dwilliams-ridley@cityofberkeley,info or via phone at 510-981-7000. Thank you for your attention to this request.

Sincerely,

Dee Williams-Ridley
Interim City Manager

cc:
Mayor and City Councilmembers
Gil Dong, Interim Deputy City Manager
Zach Cowan, City Attorney
Mark Numainville, City Clerk
Diana Alvarado, USPS Pacific Facilities Service Office

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PDF Image: berkeley-letter-to-samra-vp

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