An empty chair reserved for Canada Post remained at the front of the room throughout a town hall held this week about the proposed closure of the Perron Street post office.
Two town hall sessions were organized and hosted by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers at the St. Albert Curling Club on Wednesday.
At the afternoon session, several concerned residents were ready to speak their mind about the proposed closure. A 30 day consultation period, during which people could email or mail feedback to Canada Post, ended last week.
But it turns out some St. Albert residents aren’t ready to be done commenting.
“The post office has always been a landmark,” said Colleen Chupka. She said people have been apathetic, allowing services to decrease like the end of home delievery to much of St. Albert.
“One person can change everything,” she said, urging residents to fight to keep the post office open. The fight shouldn’t just be left to the politicians, she said.
“We all have to our two bits in,” she said, “It’s never too late if we fight.”
Chupka was among the afternoon crowd. Those who spoke were not in favour of the change.
The crowd included several seniors, but also a few business people. St. Albert realtor Mark Cassidy said if the post office closes, it is one less service in the downtown core realtors can use to help sell buyers on living there.
He also worried that taking away St. Albert’s only corporate post office – the rest of the post offices are operated as franchises inside private businesses – means that this city is being viewed as a part of Edmonton.
“St. Albert is a city in itself,” he said.
Another business owner said his operation in Riel could move to Edmonton as a result of the post office leaving. Going to Campbell Park – the other side of town – to pick up mail from the company’s post office box would be inconvenient.
Changing business stationery to reflect a new address would be expensive, he said.
Members of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) organized the two town halls. They invited Canada Post to send a representative but read out an email declining the invitation.
Barb McNeely Sears, the union’s regional co-ordinator for the Save Canada Post campaign, told the audience about other municipalities like St. Boniface that have been able to halt the closure of their post offices.
“I’ve seen these miracles happen. If St. Boniface and Jenner (Alta.) can do it, St. Albert can,” McNeely Sears said.
Lynne Pajot, a research specialist with the national arm of CUPW, encouraged attendees to think of new services the post office could offer to keep business going.
“We don’t believe that it’s over. We’re behind you 100 per cent,” Pajot said.
Ideas for new services from the crowd ranged from hosting notary public services to tourist maps and information at the office.
St. Albert-Edmonton MP Michael Cooper attended and told the afternoon session he’s asked to see the business case for closing the office, noting he has received a lot of feedback from worried constituents and business owners about the proposal.
He did say he’s heard from Canada Post that no decision has been made yet, which is what the Gazette was told last week.
