Old Orchard Beach residents say they’ve gone weeks without mail
Residents across Old Orchard Beach say they have been dealing with mail issues for months.
The mail comes once every other week in some neighborhoods. At times, residents have gone up to two full weeks without it.
“It’s out of control,” said Brandon Woods, who lives on Portland Avenue. “Even the young guy who delivers my packages told me, ‘I’m so sorry you guys are dealing with this.’”
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Woods has been experiencing problems with the post office for nearly nine months. He said Friday that he hadn’t received mail in 14 days.
“My roommate went to the post office yesterday, and the supervisor refused to acknowledge anything,” Woods said. “I went back this morning, and they brought out mail that wasn’t even mine.”
Over on Ross Road, several neighbors reported waiting at least a week — and often longer — to receive any mail.
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Sylena Gilman-Googins said she has noticed inconsistencies in her mail delivery for at least six months.
“Sometimes we only get mail a couple times a month,” Gilman-Googins said.
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Her neighbor Ian Mckenna has been waiting weeks for Colorado hunting tags to come in the mail. They still haven’t arrived.
“If they get lost, it’s a whole thing,” Mckenna said Monday.
Mckenna, who returned from working at sea in May, was only receiving mail about twice a month until mid-June, when he went to the distribution center in Saco himself.
Since then, he has started to receive mail once a week, but sometimes, it’s not his.
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“Sometimes it’s somebody else’s,” he said. “It’s very inconsistent.”
Like many others, Mckenna relies on the mail to pay his bills. If he doesn’t receive a bill in the mail, it gets marked as late.
“I’m still old-school,” he said. “It’s difficult when you rely on the mail for bills. You can’t keep your finances in order.”
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Karen Grenier knows all too well the problems that come with not receiving mail. Grenier, who lives on Lucette Avenue, said she often goes two weeks or longer without receiving any.
For her, the problem has been going on for close to six or seven years.
“It’s rare to get mail,” Grenier said.
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Her mother, who lives in Biddeford, has had the same issue. When Grenier’s father died recently, the family struggled to receive any documents pertaining to his death, including his pension.
“It’s been a nightmare,” Grenier said.
But while it’s been difficult for Grenier, it’s been even worse for her mother, who relies on the mail to receive and pay bills.
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Many of Woods’ older neighbors on Portland Avenue are dealing with the same issues, he said.
“You have elderly people who are waiting on retirement checks,” Woods said.
Inconsistent mail delivery is not happening all over Old Orchard Beach, the United States Postal Service said in a written statement Wednesday. The problems have been contained to certain neighborhoods, a spokesperson said, and are caused by staffing challenges.
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“We apologize to the affected customers who didn’t receive the level of service expected from the Postal Service,” spokesperson Judy Ferriera said.
Ferriera said delivery is expected to return to normal this week.
But Woods doesn’t believe it.
The Postal Service has promised to fix the problem “many times” over the past year, he said, but still, nothing has changed.
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Tagged: U.S. Postal Service, york county Maine
Sydney is a community reporter for Biddeford, Saco, Old Orchard Beach, Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Arundel and previously reporter for the Courier and Post. Sydney grew up in Kennebunk and is a graduate. More by Sydney Richelieu
