3 small Westmoreland postal sites saved

Three small-town post offices in Westmoreland County that were in danger of closing will remain open now that leases have been signed with the buildings' landlords, a congressman said on Tuesday.

The Postal Service has renewed the leases for post offices in Derry Borough, East Vandergrift and New Florence, as well as the Sipesville post office in Somerset County, said Mark Critz, D-Johnstown. Postal Regulatory Commission Chairman Ruth Y. Goldway notified Critz on May 24 that the leases were renewed in those communities.

Tad Kelley, a spokesman for the Postal Service in Pittsburgh, said yesterday he was not aware of the real estate leases.

A fourth post office in the region, New Alexandria, appears to have averted a possible closing. The New Alexandria Library Board two weeks ago reached a tentative agreement with the Postal Service to renew its lease on the board's building on Main Street, said Margaret Graham, vice president. The lease expires on Aug. 31.

"It's good news for the community," said Graham, who is waiting for the Postal Service to sign the agreement.

The leases were renewed for periods of three to five years, said James Penna, Critz's district director.

The issue of closing small post offices arose late last year when the Postal Service notified landlords that their leases would be terminated. Those post offices were among the 28 Westmoreland County post offices with leases that expire within two years.

Critz organized a petition drive and sent a letter to the Postal Regulatory Commission, asking for an immediate review of whether the Postal Service was using a loophole in regulations to close the post offices in those towns.

In March, Critz had raised the issue of the Postal Service threatening to close offices after the leaseholders had agreed to the Postal Service terms. Critz had questioned whether the Postal Service was using a "loophole" to close more post offices that were not part of a larger feasibility study on postal service efficiency. Towns whose post offices were targeted under that feasibility study had an appeals process outlined.