Clark residents raise questions about losing their mailboxes

Many residents in Clark are frustrated after being told they will not have a final say about losing their mailboxes.

The Board of Aldermen met Wednesday night in a room full of residents who had plenty to say about the issue.

The board said it will hold a public forum later this year, but the issue will not go up for a public vote. The board said the postal service had already approved eliminating door-to-door delivery after an initial vote in June.

Postmaster Connie Sample attended the meeting to explain two future mail service options to residents. One would be to have all mail deliveries go to P.O. Boxes at the town post office, which would remain unlocked 24/7. A second option would be to put community boxes, or Cluster Box Units, around the city.

Some residents were told they would have to pay a yearly fee for a P.O. Box. But Sample said the P.O. Boxes would be free of charge after a one time $6 fee to get two keys.

The board said many people in Clark do not maintain their mailboxes and that many are falling over. It said mailboxes also get in the way of fixing potholes, fixing ditches and are hard to maneuver around.

Clark resident John Baier asked if there is another solution.

“At this point, I think it would be easier to have those people move their mailboxes further away from the road and have that inconvenience rather than having everybody in the whole town not have a mailbox.”

Another resident, Kendra Mortica, worried about getting to the post office. Mortica said she cannot drive since she is disabled and would not be able to walk to the post office, especially in the winter months.

But Sample said the post office will offer hardship delivery, or door delivery, to elderly and disabled residents who qualify.

Officials could not answer other the question if local mail carriers’ hours will get cut, and if either of the two options will help prevent the Clark Post Office from being shut down in the future.

The board said it will hold a public forum for the issue in August or September.