Where’s My Mail? Residents Raise Concerns

In the past few weeks, the Palisadian-Post has received numerous complaints from local residents who said their mail wasn’t being delivered on time. One woman wrote that her mail had arrived at 8 at night and that the person who delivered it wasn’t wearing a postal employee uniform. Citizens from several locations around town reported similar problems, including mail that was supposed to be held but wasn’t. On Monday morning, the editor sent this reporter to the post office at La Cruz to inquire about the apparent problems. At the postal facility counter, I identified myself as a reporter for the Post and asked for Joe Harris, the current postmaster, according to the Palisadian-Post’s files. I was told by a clerk that he had been replaced by Sheryl Gardiner, who was on a conference call and would be unavailable for several hours. I left my name and number for her to call me back. Tuesday morning at 9, I returned to the post office to speak to Gardiner, and supervisor Dennis Willis said that she was on a conference call and that she would be unavailable for several hours. Willis told me that the regular carrier was back on the Alphabet Streets, and that I should contact Consumer Affairs with any concerns. I called Felicia Smith at Consumer Affairs, and she promised me she would call back Tuesday afternoon. At 11 a.m. I went back to the post office and asked to speak to Gardiner, but was told that she just went on a conference call. That afternoon, at 2, I stopped by again, and Tony Ficklin, a finance supervisor at the postal store on Sunset, who was on the floor at the La Cruz site, said that Gardiner would return my call. Tuesday afternoon at 3, she called me back. Gardiner, who is the new interim postmaster, said Monday was her first day at this new location. Harris is working on a special assignment within the postal service. ‘I have been here less than a week, so I’m unfamiliar with the concerns that the Post has identified for me today,’ Gardiner said. ‘However, I will investigate and work towards resolution. I appreciate you bringing them to my attention.’ She promised to contact the Post with her findings.