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Baker's Dozen: Postal Service Considering Closing 13 Area Offices

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jul 26, 2011 9:51PM

Through rain, snow, sleet or hail, only cost efficiency studies can stop the U.S. Mail. The United States Postal Service announced today that it's looking at closing down 13 area offices.

Spokesman Mark Reynolds said the USPS will look at customer traffic and the accessibility to postal services in the vicinity of the targeted stations. Retail outlets nearby may already offer services already provided by the Postal Service. None of the locations will close before December, so if you live near any of the affected locations you can breathe a sigh of relief that the Postal Service will get your holiday cards and gifts to their destinations a week late.

The offices targeted for closure include:

Chicago
3639 W. 79th St.
611 W. 63rd St.
956 E. 58th St.
6559 S. Ashland Ave.
2345 S. Wentworth Ave.
168 N. Clinton St.
4222 W. Madison St.
116 S. Western Ave.
324 S Laramie Ave.
5001 W. Division St.

Riverdale
661 W 138th St.

La Grange Park
701 E. 31st St.

Hillside
505 N. Wolf Rd.

Not certain about the suburban locations, but all the Chicago locations save the Clinton and Wentworth stations are coincidentally located in predominantly African American neighborhoods. The Wentworth station, in the far reaches of Chinatown, is blocks from the main post office station for the 60616 area code on South State Street.