State's first 'village' post office opens in Lester

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David “Shorty” Glanton, owner of Barn Feed and Seed in Lester, rests his arm Thursday on a mail drop-off box outside his business. The location is the first in the state to host a Village Post Office. News Courier/Rebecca Croomes
The Barn Feed and Seed on Alabama 99 in Lester is now adorned with a blue “Village Post Office” sign. Owner David “Shorty” Glanton opened the gardening supply business seven years ago. News Courier/Rebecca Croomes

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May 11, 2012

State's first 'village' post office opens in Lester

By Adam Smith adam@athensnews-courier.com The News Courier Fri May 11, 2012, 02:00 AM CDT

The United States Postal Service is experimenting in Alabama, and the tiny town of Lester is, in essence, the guinea pig.

On Thursday, the USPS opened the first Village Post Office in the state at the Barn Feed and Seed at 28901 Alabama 99. The VPO’s opening comes six months after the USPS decided to close Lester’s post office and a day after the service announced it would not close any additional rural post offices, but would instead shorten workers’ hours.

The Lester-Salem VPO will give customers access to postal products and services, which will be available during Barn Feed and Seed’s regular hours of operation. The VPO will sell stamps, flat-rate boxes, envelopes and has a blue drop-off box out front.

The service considers VPOs in locations where a community has no existing post office or has an office that will be discontinued. Each VPO retains the town’s name and ZIP Code.

Barn Feed and Seed owner David Glanton said the USPS contacted him and several other business owners in the Lester area to determine if they were interested in placing a VPO in their businesses. After telling officials he was interested, he filled out the necessary paperwork to get the ball rolling.

“We’re thankful for it and we hope it’s a good service for the community and that they take advantage of it,” Glanton said. “We’re limited to things we can do, but we’re looking forward to serving.”

USPS spokeswoman Debbie Fetterly said the timing of the VPO’s Thursday opening and Wednesday’s announcement concerning the rural locations was just a coincidence, and that the Lester opening had been in the works for several weeks. The first southern location, she said, was in Arkansas, with the Lester location being the second VPO in the South.

She said placing the service inside an existing business provides a benefit to customers who need postage materials, but who may not be able to make it to a post office during business hours. There will be other benefits, too, she added.

“It will give the USPS a chance to save money as we reduce hours at various post offices,” she said. “I’m very excited about this being the first one in the state.”

Despite public meetings where Lester residents expressed their concerns, the USPS closed the town’s post office on Nov. 5. Mail operations were transferred to Elkmont.

A feasibility study conducted in March 2011 listed the Lester Post Office and several other locations around the state for possible closure. The Lester facility contained only about 12 post office boxes, but served about 470 homes in surrounding areas through delivery. About 100 people live in the incorporated town of Lester. Salem is an adjoining unincorporated community.

At an April 2011 public meeting with residents, USPS officials told residents the decision to close post offices was based on a diminished bottom line. The USPS closed fiscal year 2010 $8.5 billion in the red and saw its mail volume decline from 213 billion pieces in 2006 to 170 billion in 2010.

Glanton said he and other Lester residents were disappointed by the decision to close the town’s post office but added he understood the economic factors involved.

“We sure hated to lose it,” he said. “It was a big part of the community.”

Another positive impact of having a VPO in his business, he said, is the possibility of attracting new customers to his store. Glanton opened the Barn Feed and Seed seven years ago, and he operates it with his son, Shane.

“We’re hoping it will bring us more business and more traffic,” he said. “We’re the first one in the state to have this type of business and we’re thrilled by that.”

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