By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews
YACHATS – The U.S. Postal Service has ended the Waldport postmaster’s oversight of the Yachats Post Office, but staffing and addressing issues continue to bedevil the operation.
Waldport postmaster Tamara Hamilton, who stepped into the role of officer in charge of the Yachats post office after postmaster Chanda Kowitz left the job in January for undisclosed reasons, has been removed.
It was after Hamilton took over operations in Yachats that delivery issues went sideways and a consistent flood of mail began being returned to senders.
After two months of stop-and-go chaos, the Yachats operation is relying on a single clerk with some help from post offices in Newport and Florence. Yachats had previously been authorized to have a postmaster and two clerks.
Even Oregon’s congressional delegation can’t get clear answers from USPS officials.
Postal officials cite a new, strict adherence to properly addressing packages and letters as the cause of the disruption. But despite signs and notices mailed to customers about how letters and packages should be addressed, problems persist. The number of complaints on social media and in conversations around the community continue unabated.
Community members have posted photos of letters seemingly addressed correctly that were returned to sender. Medications are not getting through and utility bills returned. A recent Facebook post bemoaned that while two packages were addressed identically, one was delivered and the other returned.
A rallying cry went up to document the issues and report them to Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore.
Merkley’s Oregon press secretary Molly Prescott said the senator has received complaints about mail being returned to sender by the postal service despite being properly addressed, along with comments on other issues.
Prescott said Merkley and Rep. Val Hoyle, D-Ore. wrote USPS district manager William Schwartz expressing community concerns and requested information about the cause of disruption as well as staffing issues.
“This shift has caused a lot of frustration and difficulties for residents of Yachats, who have reached out to me after not receiving satisfactory answers from the Postal Service,” their letter said.
Merkley and Hoyle said Yachats is a rural, underserved community that relies heavily on the post office for items residents cannot purchase locally, including prescription medications, and that the absence of a regular postmaster has caused significant disruptions.
“Many packages have been returned to the sender almost immediately as a result of strict compliance to Postal Service standards enforced by the acting postmaster out of Waldport,” the letter said. “This not only has a severe impact on the most vulnerable people of the community who rely on medication delivery via mail, but it also requires residents to have their packages reshipped, resulting in duplicate costs and increased wait time.”
Prescott told YachatsNews that Merkley’s field representative for Lincoln County, as well as his constituent services and policy teams for USPS issues continue to stay on top of community concerns and that Schwartz had replied last month.
“He wrote that ‘The office is under the skilled management of the Waldport Postmaster with a full complement of retail staff’,” Prescott said in an email to YachatsNews. “He did not make any reference to Waldport Postmaster Tamara Hamilton being removed from the Yachats post office, but we will dig into this.”
Schwartz wrote the Yachats post office uses box numbers to deliver much of the mail and that automation and modern sorting depend on standardized addressing formats. He encouraged customers to use “proper address on all correspondence which aligns with national postal standards.” Schwartz also told Merkley and Hoyle that he understands some companies will not accept a post office box address. To aid employees, USPS has provided multiple options to customers when addressing mail with their box number.
Schwartz response echoed that of USPS regional spokeswoman Kimberly Frum who was asked by YachatsNews about the situation in January and again in February.
But Frum confirmed this week that Hamilton had been replaced in Yachats with a new officer in charge — but cited privacy policies for declining to name the person or their position.
Yachats city councilor Catherine Whitten-Carey told residents during the council’s February meeting that council is paying attention and listening to complaints. Mayor Craig Berdie, who also had prescriptions returned to sender, asked Whitten-Carey to come up with a proposed statement by Wednesday’s council meeting that council could endorse and send to Merkley.
- Garret Jaros is YachatsNews’ full-time reporter and can be reached at GJaros@YachatsNews.com
The Postal Service malfunction has spread to Newport. A private contractor who delivered mail on several routes including mine suddenly left the state more than a week ago due to some sort of personal emergency, disrupting mail delivery for more than a week. I went two days without mail twice. Normal delivery resumed this week and I hope it stays that way.
The Postal Service has become way too dependent on private contractors instead of hiring employees and paying them decent wages and benefits.
Chanda loved her job and became part of the community. She was dealt a difficult hand. There’s quite a bit of entitlement in Yachats. That job at the post office is literally impossible due to the culture. I left.
No, the job is not impossible as evidenced by the service in the last 20 years. The present situation is the worst it’s ever been. If entitlement means getting our mail on time and not being returned then yes, I guess you could say we’re all entitled. I don’t think that is the case however, as it wouldn’t be for anywhere else in the U.S.
The same conditions exist at the Waldport Post Office .
And worse
I find it interesting that Schwarts lists that national standards are in place when they conflict with the official POM manual 816.33 and 816.25. And the past practice of a 10 day hold being removed without informing the public. I understand letters without a correct po box # being returned, but parcels with a tracking number are a different product that costs more and should therefor receive better treatment. What is really lacking from this District Manager is his lack of empathy. If these are new national standards, then the POM needs to be updated to reflect this in the platform of transparency. Perhaps Schwarts needs to attend a congressional hearing and explain his alternative facts.