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All Minot mail goes to Bismarck

Shelly Hanson

Postmaster, Minot

The recent letter to the editor, “Mail for Minot” expressed concern for a piece of local mail that was postmarked in Bismarck. The letter writer was unaware that since 2015 all the area mail has been processed and sorted in Bismarck. While some large mailers have the technology to allow us to process their mail locally, most of our local mail is not. The reasons are efficiency and safety.

The decision to consolidate smaller processing centers earlier this decade was national in scope and was in response to the continued decline in First-Class Mail. The May 2, 2019 Minot Daily News article, “Security drives postal decisions,” explained many of the reasons for this move.

The current Minot facility would have required millions of dollars in upgrades for equipment and a building expansion in order to meet enhanced security and sorting requirements. This was not a financially prudent decision, especially given the proximity of the state-of-the-art Bismarck operation just a couple of hours away. This mail is processed and consistently delivered locally within 1-2 days.

Like any other household or business, we need to be efficient and fiscally prudent, especially since we don’t receive tax money for our operations. We are laser-focused on our mission as evidenced by our history – now 234 years old – to connect the nation. We are proud of our place in the Minot community and look forward to continuing our service.

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