Post Office May Close Smith County Facility

OWENTOWN — The financial problems with the U.S. Postal Service may bring lots of changes to our mail service. Now, according to KETK, they may also mean some local jobs. The U.S. Post Office is as old as the nation, and is even included in the Constitution. But technology has changed everything, and cutbacks are coming — some of them, right here.

Postmaster General Patrick Donahue laid out the grim news for the nation that some time-honored traditions in mail delivery may go the way of full-service gas. The U.S. post office sorting facility in Owentown is among 250 centers slated for probable closure due to lack of business. The cause is as close as your computer. What’s left of the Lufkin facility is also on the list. Spokesman McKinney Boyd says postal officials hope the job losses will be minimal. As for the other postal services, Boyd says they are competitive. But the simple act of writing a letter or mailing in a bill is becoming a thing of the past, and the Post Office will have to change. The feasibility study will take about 4-6 months, but most assume the writing is on the wall.