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Pushing the Envelope Blog

Keeping the Postal Service Looking Its Best

Date: 06/20/22 | Category: Post Offices & Retail Network

Post offices and delivery units are the Postal Service’s front door to the public. People visit them to buy stamps, drop off mail, or pick up a package. They’re also the workplace for postmasters, clerks, and carriers. That’s why it’s so important they are clean, safe, and in good condition.

The OIG regularly audits property conditions at retail and delivery units. On June 2, we released what we call a capping report. The capping report summarizes our findings from 16 property condition audits conducted in fiscal years 2020 and 2021. These reviews uncovered hundreds of issues at 46 facilities:

  • Maintenance and appearance problems including unclean lobbies with dirty or damaged fixtures and walls needing paint or repair;
  • Health and safety problems such as plumbing and electrical issues and tripping hazards; and
  • Security issues such as unlocked vehicles, insecure doors, and inoperable security cameras.

As part of the capping report, we took a second look at some of the facilities where we found the most egregious problems as well as two new facilities to see if the Postal Service was doing better at keeping its facilities in good condition.

Unfortunately, while the Postal Service fixed problems found in the initial visits, management didn’t ensure that facilities continued to be well maintained. Our auditors identified new issues at all of the revisited facilities as well as at the two new facilities. The same sorts of problems kept cropping up again.

The OIG found the problems continued to occur because the Postal Service does not have a standardized process to assess whether employees at retail and delivery units are maintaining facility standards, and we recommended the Postal Service implement one. The Postal Service agreed with the recommendation.

How do you think the Postal Service can take better care of its facilities? Could your local post office use a good cleaning or some maintenance?

Leave a Comment

Your Name
Sandra
May 24, 2023
Your Comment
Employees should all eat in break room not work floor some of the facilities only have 1 custodian. With employees throwing paper mask in the stair wells. The employees need to be a team player. And hard to keep lobby cleaned with bikes dogs and customers coming in with food and drinks while your trying to clean. Polices need to be changed.
Your Name
Yvonne Willis
May 24, 2023
Your Comment
The Post Office in Oakland, CA located on the corner of 92nd and International Blvd. Looks absolutely horrible. The yard is unkept with trash all over. For this to be a U. S. government building is definitely not a good look. I am embarrassed to bring my out-of-state guests with me to even mail things here. Can this problem PLEASE be resolved. Sincerely,

Yvonne Willis
Your Name
Randy flanery
May 23, 2023
Your Comment
Elk Grove florin rd office looks like home less camp grass is dead a in some spots three to four foot tall looks bad
Your Name
Dean Robertson
May 15, 2023
Your Comment
The lobby of the Freedom, NH 03836 post is in need of cleaning. There is debris on the carpets and pieces of paper along the edges of the walls. Certainly the employees could keep it cleaner.
Your Name
Luis Caldas
May 11, 2023
Your Comment
Leonia post office is in need of repair ,very derty and it a shame to live in a beautiful town having a post office like that , please do somthing thank you


Your Name
B. Hoyt
May 10, 2023
Your Comment
The Suwanee Post office located at 990 Peachtree Industrial Blvd, Suwanee, GA 30024 is very much an eyesore compared to the other businesses around it that keep things very manicured. The grounds are never mowed, the trees and bushes overgrown and the bushes near the building always unkept. The inside is dirty as well. Its disappointing to see that a government building isn't raising its standard to meet the communities standard of excellence in how they maintain.
Your Name
Linda Bussey
May 9, 2023
Your Comment
The Pacific Grove PO(93950) needs serious grounds maintenance. It's completely overgrown and trashy. The building is a beautiful old PO. It used to look picture perfect. Not anymore. It needs to shine once again as a proud member of Pacific Grove history.
Your Name
Brian F Olsen
May 7, 2023
Your Comment
Boulder City, NV Post Office is totally unacceptable! The grass and trees are dying. Signage all around is unreadable and broken. Lobby is filthy. Cobwebs and filth from years ago. Nobody is caring for the grounds. The trees are dying. Grass is dead. Bushes dead. It is unacceptable!
Apr 24, 2023
Your Comment
Holland New York Post Office has mold/ mildew growing on the front of the building. The Parking lot and driveways are full of pot holes.
Your Name
Mud
Apr 21, 2023
Your Comment
I think one person should try to be a custodian for a day

A maintenance man for a day

Then wonder why everything isn’t being done perfectly
Your Name
Jennie Frazer
Apr 13, 2023
Your Comment
Nokomos Florida post office 34275 Filthy floors dirty windows overgrown weeds . Who is in charge of maintaining?
Your Name
Ben
Apr 13, 2023
Your Comment
Post office at 6101 W. Michigan Ave. Lansing,MI 48917. We need the build cleaned on inside, black on duct vents, possible mold, and dusty. Plus outside of building is not taken care of either.
Your Name
Linda Cowin
Mar 30, 2023
Your Comment
The Post Office in Leavittsburg, OH 44430 is filthy. The outside of the building needs a good washing as well as cleaning the windows. When you walk into the outer lobby there are two windows that have vertical blinds that are black with grime and dirt and the floor needs cleaned. The inside lobby is just as bad, the floors, windows and blinds are all filthy. I sent a letter to the Postmaster 6 weeks ago and nothing has been touched.
Your Name
Tommi Brauner
Mar 27, 2023
Your Comment
The Hallandale post office at 500 S. Federal Hwy., Hallandale Beach, FL. 33009 is filthy and in disrepair. There is a black piece of weatherstripping (?)hanging off the front door.The doors, windows and floors are dirty, the priority mail service service box area is dusty and never stocked.
One of the signs in the lobby looks shredded.
Most post offices I go into are similar. I don’t understand it. How about basic cleanliness and trying to improve post office image?
Your Name
Chris Robinson
Mar 27, 2023
Your Comment
My local post office facility in southwest Portland Oregon is badly in need of exterior maintenance . There are rain sewers in the parking area which do not drain, causing very large puddles in the parking lot. One of the two drians is ingrown with grass so very little water can drain.
There are dead shrubs, lots of weeds, bollards knocked over (concrete posts to prevent vehicles bumping), handicap parking wheel stops are broken, etc.
At one point a hole in the entryway rug mat was left open unfixed for more than six months without a safety barrier.
Service is generally good at this station as is interior cleaning but there seems to be no connection with the general maintenance necessary outside the building.
Your Name
Scott Tipler
Mar 27, 2023
Your Comment
I'm a custodian in west Fargo ND, I think team clean is a good thing, but management
Is not behind it they are always trying to get out of it
We have the same amount of supervisors as custodians that s crazy.
Your Name
McKinzie
Mar 24, 2023
Your Comment
The post office at 2875 Ashton Rd. Sarasota, Fl 34231 needs at least 4 canister ceiling lights over the work counter so that the employees can see better. I think it may be tiring to work in a dimly lit workplace.
Your Name
Linda
Jan 25, 2023
Your Comment
Nothing appears to have been done to improve the front lobby of the Troy, MI postoffice located on Livernois Road in Troy for years. I think most Amerians have a fond attachment to our mail person and our post office. We appreciate the services we get, but want the employees to work in a clean, bright environment, where furniture and other items are not held together with duck tape. Current problems which I do not need a reply about also include: inconsistent hold mail services, which makes it really difficult to feel you can trust the PO to process and honor your held mail request. Also, overflow at the drive by mailbox, which this PO is aware of and supposedly taking steps to fix. (In this case people are being ridiculous and pushing more mail in and letting other mail fall out of the drive by box, rather than physically taking it into the building to deposit.). I read some of your audits for why the POs nationally are in such bad shape. I look at those excuses as totally unexceptable. If you want to cut service, cut out Saturday deliveries. Also, where is the money going that has been saved from the PO now having the retired staff access Medicare vs the PO paying for their health care? Please find a way to improve these offices for our sakes and especially for those who work hard to deliver our mail daily. They are doing a great job in spite of the difficulties. Thank you.
Your Name
Charles D Truitt
Dec 29, 2022
Your Comment
Went to the Bonita , Ca. post office today to purchase $ 1.00 stamps and extra ounce stamps ,,,,,,they were out of both . This happens frequently at this location .
Your Name
Morgan
Dec 17, 2022
Your Comment
A cleaner post office will great. Sadly in my city our post office had 6 people to do the cleaning and repairs. We are now down to 2 people. Please explain how the post office is to be cleaned and repaired properly when you refuse to staff it properly. Just continue to cut the staff and wonder why they are dirty and things are broken. If your going to out source the maintenance jobs do it already. The existing maintenance staff will eventually attrition out, but in the meantime if you have a post office that had a staff of 6 and is down to 2 and you want the offices to be cleaner hire a supplemental outside company to assist the remaining maintenance people till they retire. But expecting 2 to do the job 6 did, is just not going to work and the situations in each and every post office will continue to decline.
Your Name
Patricia Hicks
Nov 23, 2022
Your Comment
The post office in Crockett, Texas could use a good cleaning. The floors haven't been swept in some time, the doors are dirty and usually have outdated flyers, the outside of the building needs to be power washed as well.
Your Name
Debbie Todd
Nov 15, 2022
Your Comment
Yes , I just received one of these text messages and started filling it out until it asked for my credit info. I am indeed waiting for a parcel from Britain . I have had so much of this lately :-( So grateful you posted this ......
Your Name
Annemarie Torrez
Nov 1, 2022
Your Comment
Good day! Thanks for asking about improvements. While I have nothing but EXCELLENT things to say about our letter carrier here in Cranberry Township, PA, the USPS post office exterior is in need of significant cleaning. The exterior light colored surface is EXTREMELY dirty with heavy dust/dirt or mold. It makes me cringe when I see it. I want to power wash it myself! Don't worry... I won't do that but it is that bad. Thanks for any consideration.
Your Name
Tim Holt
Oct 19, 2022
Your Comment
US Postal Box (blue box) located at the US Post Office in Bladenboro NC 28320, needs maintenance or replacement. Several community citizens have verbally complained to the 28320 Post Master and no action has been taken to date.
This is an item the general public in the area use frequently, and an item that represents the US Postal Service standards and behaviors.
It should be unacceptable for a Post Master to ignore several complaints on condition of US Postal property and not addressing local residents concerns.
Residents are using Facebook discussing this issue and are stirring unnecessary bad publicity for the Post Office, Post Master needs to address the replacement of the box and eliminate the unnecessary drama.
Your Name
Aaron Goodman
Oct 10, 2022
Your Comment
Postal facilities need more frequent repairs and review due to age and conditions. They also need a long range plan for properties and global and local changes in facilities and density of urban areas. Takes a lot more cooperation and planning with facilities and the union to ensure a good list of repairs and proper attention to future facilities in urban areas due to growth impacts.