U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Fairhope) on Friday voiced his displeasure that the United States Postal Service (USPS) is following through on their plan to close the post office in Spanish Fort after months-long negotiations to keep it open.

P.O. box owners in the Spanish Fort office were given notice in September 2019 that the office’s closure was imminent. The building stayed open on a temporary basis over the last year as negotiations between local, federal and USPS officials continued.

“They have repeatedly breached the public trust and misled us,” said Byrne of USPS officials on Friday, alleging the post office executives told him “every effort would be made to keep the PO Boxes located in Spanish Fort.”

“We have now found out that USPS planned to move the boxes out of Spanish Fort all along,” Byrne claimed in a forceful statement.

“For over a year, my office has attempted to work with USPS officials to ensure Spanish Fort – one of the fastest growing communities in Alabama – has access to PO Boxes and a contract postal unit in their community. We worked closely with Mayor McMillan and the city to convey the importance of this issue to USPS and forge a solution to meet the community’s needs,” Byrne explained.

A statement from city officials in Spanish Fort says the post office in question is now slated to close on January 15.

“Based on the demand for postal services and the population growth in the City of Spanish Fort and the surrounding areas, this is not acceptable,” the assemblage of local officials stated.

“While we are disappointed, we remain committed to working to get a full service post office for the people of Spanish Fort and will continue to press USPS on this important matter,” Byrne concluded.

Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: henry@new-yhn.local or on Twitter @HenryThornton95.