Save Historic Post Offices From the Auction Block

As part of the union’s ongoing struggle to save the Postal Service, the APWU has distributed information and guidance to local and state leaders who are engaged in efforts to stop the Postal Service from selling historic post offices.The material was produced as a follow-up to a discussion union officers had at the June 2013 National Presidents’ Conference about protests citizens’ groups are waging against the Postal Service’s decision to sell the historic Post Office in Berkeley CA and other locations.

“These protests coincide with our efforts to stop consolidations, excessing and reductions in service standards,” noted APWU President Cliff Guffey and Legislative and Political Director Gary Kloepfer in a letter accompanying the information.

The National Register of Historic Places has designated 2,530 postal buildings as worthy of preservation. Under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the register is administered by the National Park Service as part of a national program “to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America's historic and archeological resources”

The historic preservation review process requires the Postal Service to complete five key tasks prior to selling a historic postal building. These tasks are outlined in Fighting for your Historic Post Office: Guidance for APWU Locals.

Local unions and state organizations hoping to halt the sale of historic postal facilities should familiarize themselves with the perseveration review processes required under the law and join forces with a coalition of “elected officials at the federal, state and municipal level, labor unions, preservation groups, neighbors, friends, etc.,” Guffey and Kloepfer wrote.

Nonprofit and community organizations such as the National Trust for Historic Preservation may be of additional assistance.

Additional resources are in the fight preserve historic USPS facilities are available on the Save the Post Office Web site.