Don’t Close This One

To help deal with a severe budget deficit, the USPS has proposed closing about 3700 post offices over the next year. None of Bremerton’s three branches are on the closure list. But if the list expands and the USPS cuts Bremerton back to two outlets, the gorgeous landscaping at the post office on National Avenue (see photo) should be a point in favor of keeping it open. I have never seen a post office with more curb appeal.

Actually if the National Avenue branch were to be evaluated against its Bremerton siblings, it has other merits than its good looks. It’s the newest of the three (it opened in 1994 under President Clinton and Postmaster General Marvin Runyon), has the most space, and is strategically located a half-mile from State Route 3. It may not take in as much revenue as the other branches (a key factor for USPS bean counters), but at least the USPS has never tried to sell it. (Both the downtown and East Bremerton buildings have been for sale for years.) As for customer convenience, that depends on where the customer being asked lives.

National Avenue is a key connecting route on Bremerton’s west side. I wouldn’t call the area blighted, but many of the buildings along it have a tired industrial look. A mix of small older homes built during World War II adds to the rundown look. The post office is one of the few bright spots (along with Genesco Supply) on National Avenue. When I drive past it, I feel a bit more hope for the area.

In researching this post I read about a post office in Medina, Washington, that received a free landscaping makeover from several professional landscapers. With USPS budgets stretched tight, perhaps the same thing is happening at the National Avenue post office. A sign next to the dahlia garden says that the flowers were planted by the Kitsap County Dahlia Society. Maybe volunteers are also trimming the trees and shrubs and mowing and fertilizing the well-kept lawn. There isn’t a weed in sight.

The Mud Bay blog doesn’t hand out awards, but if it did the landscaping crew at the National Avenue post office—whether they are volunteers or are getting paid—would get one.