Officials express concerns over future of Postal Service’s North Platte facility

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (KNOP) - Earlier this year, the United States Postal Service announced its intention to conduct an evaluation of current operations at the North Platte Processing and Distribution Center.

A large portion of the review centered on the possibility of some mail processing being relocated from North Platte to Denver. In some cases, mail that is being dropped off in Greater Nebraska would be transported to North Platte and then to Denver for processing before heading to the recipient.

Decades-long District One Lincoln County Commissioner Joe Hewgley expresses concerns about the efficiency of what is being proposed while pointing to the COVID-19 pandemic when postal operations rely heavily on the North Platte facility and its workers.

”It came from Denver to North Platte to get worked because they could not keep enough people in the Denver office to work the mail because during COVID they did not want to come into the workplace. Our people came in like troopers, wearing masks and doing their jobs. There is a lot to be said about our midwest Nebraska work ethic,” said Hewgley.

Hewgley adds that he and others are experiencing some Deja Vu from when the Post Office moved from its longtime location in Downtown North Platte to its current home along Industrial Avenue.

”We all went out and voiced our concerns including our senators and congressman but it seems to me like once the postal service has decided something is going to change it’s just a matter of working the numbers to get it to justify that,” said Hewgley.

Hewgley expressed concerns for not just North Platte and Lincoln County but for Greater Nebraska as well. “You think about all of these outlying areas that feed into us. I mean you go out to Flatts Nebraska or Lakeside, some of these little communities. This is just a big deal,” said Hewgley.

North Platte Mayor Brandon Kelliher shares some of the concerns as Commissioner Hewgley. “But they are talking about removing some of the functions and moving those to Denver. On the surface, it seems like if you went to mail a letter locally it might make a trip to Denver and then back before it was delivered, which does not seem to make a lot of sense to me because we have not talked directly to the postal service about it,” said Mayor Kelliher.

Mayor Kelliher acknowledges the vital role the North Platte Post Office plays for the region. ”However, it is important to our citizens to have reliable mail service for a variety of reasons. The City will do whatever we can to keep the postal functions here and local because we believe that provides the best service possible for local residents,” said Mayor Kelliher.

This Thursday the Postal Service will hold a public meeting in North Platte to present their initial findings and hear community feedback.