Clark city officials consider removing mailboxes

Clark city officials recently decided to have all mail deliveries go to P.O. Boxes at the city post office. But the issue is still on the table.

An employee at Clark City Hall said the Board of Aldermen is looking into removing all mailboxes within city limits because many are hanging over culverts, making it hard for maintenance trucks to maneuver around.

City officials said switching to P.O. Boxes would make it easier on maintenance crews and save money on city maintenance. But some residents don’t like the idea.

Postal workers have already started preparing for the switch getting extra P.O. Boxes ready and giving residents keys to boxes as they come in, Postmaster Connie Sample said.The workload for the post office and cost to operate would be the same if door-to-door deliveries are eliminated, Sample said.

But doing so would create a hassle for many residents, Neeson said.

“We have people who do live here are elderly and the disabled,” Clark resident Penny Neeson said. “It’s gonna be rough on them. We know one lady, she’s been getting her mail for over 50 years, her husband is sick. She’s gonna have her mail taken away from her. And she’s gonna have to go to the post office and leave her sick husband.”

Neeson said she is upset because she lives on a MoDOT maintained road, so her mailbox is not an obstacle for city workers. But her mailbox would still be removed because she lives just yards within the city limit.

Neeson said she is unhappy the Board of Aldermen has not asked for the town’s input on the issue.

“Theres a lot of people here in town that don’t even know that they’re gonna loose their mailboxes,” Neeson said.

Abc 17 spoke with several other residents in Clark. Most of them had not heard about the vote to remove the mailboxes.

The City of Clark Board of Aldermen will hold an open meeting Wednesday at 7 p.m. They are set to discuss the mail route within city limits.