Did You Know This Maine Town’s Post Office Has Been ‘Temporarily’ Closed For 4 Years?

Like many other services, the pandemic caused a disruption in the postal service.

Initially, there were concerns that the handling and transport of mail and packages could lead to a spread of the virus.  Later, the USPS suffered from staffing shortages and financial issues.

As a result, some areas in Maine saw sporadic mail delivery.  There were reports that the postal service was only delivering mail in some areas a few times a week.

In 2021, one Maine town even lost its post office.  Nearly four years later, the postal service still does not have an office there.

According to an article on the WGME website, the West Paris post office closed in May of 2021, when the lease on the building was not renewed.

READ MORE: Here's Why the USPS Wants Maine Residents to Check Their Mailboxes

The article does not make it clear if that was a decision of the USPS or the owner of the building.  That building now reportedly is home to apartments.

The only USPS presence in the town is a blue mailbox.

The nearest post office for the residents of West Paris is the South Paris post office.  That's a 10-mile trip for most of the town's 1,800 residents.

Over the summer of 2024, the Postal Service announced that it had signed a lease to reopen the West Paris post office at a new location: the former Ledgeview Living Center on Route 26. However, nearly a year later, there has been little visible progress.

The article explains that WGME reached out to the USPS and they were told that there was a funding issue and the hope was the new West Paris office would be open by this August.