The closure study list included post offices in the interior communities of Anvik, Beaver, Hughes, Kaltag, Koyukuk, Stevens Village, Shaegeluk and Lake Minchumina. Lake Minchumina resident Julie Collins has been contacting legislators and media outlets about the threat, and says she’s “walking on air’ after hearing news it’s over. Collins says post offices are very important in off road system communities.
Collins says Lake Minchumina’s post office was set up in a duplex with the local library following a 2007 closure threat, locals fought back, with the help of former senator Ted Stevens. She says the postal service has since spent nearly $300,000 standardizing the facility.
The post offices being reviewed included interior facilities at Clear, Circle, Chitina, Eielson, and Ft. Wainwright.
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Dan Bross is a reporter at KUAC in Fairbanks.
