29 September, 2020
Representative Katherine Clark 2448 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515
Senator Elizabeth Warren 309 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
Senator Edward Markey 255 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
September 23, 2020
Dear Representative Clark and Senators Warren and Markey,
We are writing to you today in support of the Ashland Select Board’s September 6, 2020 letter regarding the delayed clean up and reopening of the Ashland Post Office Building located at 205 Main Street.
Ashland’s post office has now been closed for ten months, and there is still no sign of work getting underway for its reopening. This post office is a vital service for the community and for the local economy. The long-term, unplanned closure of this post office has made an already challenging year even more difficult for residents. We urge you, the members of the United States Congressional Delegation from Massachusetts, to lend your support so that much-needed construction work can be started immediately and Ashland’s post office can be reopened as soon as possible.
Last fall, after being determined to be a safety hazard, Ashland’s post office was closed due to mold. Necessary repairs were never started, and reopening timetables were repeatedly pushed back. In February of this year, the United States Postal Service announced that work to repair the office would begin in May. Since February, Ashland officials have not received any further updates and repairs to the unused building have still - ten months later - not even begun, leaving it as a safety hazard. We understand that the pandemic has made it necessary to reevaluate outstanding projects through a heightened lens of public safety. However, to put this project - which should have been a priority even before the pandemic - on indefinite hold without notice is
egregious. Safe and socially distanced construction work is well under way across much of Massachusetts and the country. Construction needs to begin; Ashland deserves a post office.
Thank you for your considering this request for support. We are grateful for the support that you all have demonstrated for the U.S. Postal Service this year, and we ask you that extend that to advocacy for this specific case. We are happy to talk further about this issue or answer any questions, so please do not hesitate to get in touch via our respective offices.
We wish you a safe and productive remainder of 2020.
Best wishes,
Senate President Karen E. Spilka Representative Jack P. Lewis Second Middlesex and Norfolk Seventh Middlesex Karen.Spilka@masenate.gov Jack.Lewis@mahouse.gov (617) 722-1500 (617) 722-2030
cc: Michael Herbert, Ashland Town Manager
Yolanda Greaves, Ashland Select Board Chair Joseph Magnani, Ashland Select Board Vice Chair Brandi Kinsman, Ashland Select Board Clerk Steve Mitchell, Ashland Select Board Member Robert Sherer, Ashland Select Board Member
