Whitesboro Post Office May Relocate

WHITESBORO – The rusting trailer sits in the parking lot adjacent to the Martin Luther King Community Center on West Main Street. The trailer is an unlikely home for a semi-independent federal agency. This one houses the United States Post Office for ZIP code 08252.  
Whitesboro is an enclave of about 2,200 individuals on 3.6-square miles of Middle Township. It is an area rich with the history of the township and one in which residents are very concerned with maintaining their separate identity as a community.
One symbol of that identity is their unique ZIP code. That ZIP code and the post office that supports it were the subject of discussion at Middle Township Committee’s Feb. 21 work session.
Representatives of the Postal Service’s South Jersey District listened as Recreation Department Supervisor Robert Matthews outlined the township’s concerns with the site of the trailer.
“The major concern is safety,” Matthews began. He spoke of the tractor-trailer that delivers mail. “It needs to back in down the driveway in an area where children play,” he added.
Matthews continued that the deteriorating trailer was an eyesore next to the community center. It blocks access to certain courts, and parking for post office patrons means competition with those attending center events.
What was apparent early on was that the township committee was supportive of the relocation of the post office as long as it could be kept in Whitesboro.
The option proffered by township officials is an area adjacent to the former Whitesboro School on East Main Street. This option keeps the office in the heart of the community and on a dead-end side of the street that sees little traffic.
There was also some discussion of locating the post office inside the school, an idea opposed by Committee member Timothy Donohue. He argued that the plan for school space calls for using it for community services.
Business Administrator Elizabeth Terenik said that relocating the trailer to the school area might require paving some of the grass next to the building. 
For their part, the Postal Service representatives expressed the goal of the service as a commitment to community needs. They outlined their need for specific kinds of data necessary to see if a proposed site would meet Postal Service guidelines.
One thing everyone agreed on was that the existing facility is in poor shape and in need of remedy.
During the meeting on locations, there was some talk of a new trailer to replace the present one, but that was never the focus of discussion.
What no one wants is to have the post office close, since without it Whitesboro would morph into just another part of Court House to the U.S. Postal Service. Historic Whitesboro ZIP code 08252 would become 08210.
To contact Vince Conti, email vconti@cmcherald.com.