HRSR INFORMATION 09-23-2002 - Laserfiche WebLink

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SAP 0 3 2002 ORWht° 11 I ..` a _ �' :; Vol 49, No. 17 •♦ September 1, 2002 `:Essentia�'��t�ori�atian:FQr,E�� rtfou�n;�evi�a�izctt�o�r =�k � ;.�� ,...._�, •t Proactive approach helps town centers Case Study: 1 in struggle to retain post offices Local control of state route is a cornerstone of this The post office is a central part closing a facility, forcing the Postal redevelopment effort of many downtowns—in fact Service to take into account the some downtowns sprung up around extent to which the post office is a Maplewood, NJ (pop. 22,000), the post office, and in some small part of a core downtown business has successfully petitioned to take towns, a post office may be the area; concerns of local officials, control of Springfield Avenue, a only community gathering place. including consistency with growth main thoroughfare and state high But more and more downtown post projections and land use plans; and way, from the state of New Jersey, offices are in danger. The cash- consistency with the size, scale, with an eye toward creating a strapped United States Postal design, and general character of pedestrian- and motorist-friendly 4 ri) Service (USPS), grappling with a the surrounding community. shopping district. Maplewood is projected $1.5 billion deficit for "Post offices are critical to only the second town in the state to 2002 and a mandate to be self-suf- downtowns," says a spokesperson make such a request, but according ficient, is seeking the right to oper- for Congressman Blumenauer. to Beth Anne Macdonald, director ate more as an independent compa- "They have been closing in a lot of of the Springfield Avenue Partner ny. One way it hopes to achieve small towns especially, and mov- ship (SAP), a special improvement that is to close money-losing facili- ing out to areas which are not district funded by a tax imposed on ties or to consolidate offices into accessible to people. They can't the two-mile corridor, control of more cost-efficient ones on the out- walk there and it doesn't help the the route is the cornerstone of the skirts of town. local commerce." city's plans. That's what happened in (Continued on page 3 Congress considers action ( P g 3) Encinitas, CA (pop. 55,000), a little At the same time, Congress, over a year ago, when the Postal recognizing the importance of a Service closed the downtown Inside this issue post office to a vibrant town center, branch, directing its downtown cus • is considering a law that would • Handling post office parking Comers to a pair of small branches, problems . . . 2 force the Postal Service to take the p each about two and a half miles community into account when con- away, or the new main branch six sidering closures. The Post Office • Keep your post office miles away. downtown 3 Community Partnership Act of "It does affect the businesses 2001 bill, introduced by Congress- downtown,„ according to Kristina . Heat-stam in offers cheap man Earl Blumenauer(D-OR) and Murray, assistant director of the Heat-stamping p cosponsored by 57 other members alternative to pavers' 5 . Downtown Encinitas MainStreet of Congress, is still in committee. Association (DEMA). "A lot of the It would modify the factors the • One-stop shopping for USPS will have to consider when (Continued on page 2) economic incentives 6 ©2002 Alexander Communications Group, Inc.All rights reserved.