Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05

What’s Going To Happen to the Downtown Post Office?

USPS Maintains No Decision Has Yet Been Made

Story by Kathleen McFadden

The notice taped to the front door of the downtown Boone Post Office couldn’t be clearer: “The US Postal Service is selling the US Post Office, downtown station building at 689 West King Street, Boone, North Carolina.”

And the December 17 letter that Daniel Godwin, a principal at Weber, Hodges & Godwin, sent to Watauga County Manager Rocky Nelson couldn’t be clearer: “The United States Postal Service (USPS) is selling the Downtown Post Office located at 679 West King Street in Boone. Our firm has been asked to assist the USPS in the disposition of the property.”

And yet Enola Rice, the U.S. Postal Service spokesperson for the State of North Carolina and portions of South Carolina, said on Monday that the Postal Service has not yet decided whether to sell the building or not.

“We are exploring our options and are in the very preliminary stages,” Rice said. “We have retained a broker to get an appraisal and will do fieldwork to see how feasible it is to sell. We will be taking information from prospective buyers.”

The process could take until mid-March, Rice said. “By mid-March we should have a better feel for what are intentions are,” she added. “We have to go through steps to find out if the building can be sold. Then we can make an informed decision.”

When asked why the notice at the post office states that the Postal Service is selling the property when no decision has yet been made, Rice replied, “I know what the notice says. It’s similar to putting a home up for sale to see if it’s possible to sell, but we haven’t determined yet what the decision will be.”

In April 2006, rumors surfaced that the Postal Service was planning to sell the post office.

Not so, Carl Walton, spokesperson for the U.S. Postal Service Greensboro District, said at the time. “There are no plans to close the office,” Walton said in April; however, the facility is currently “undergoing evaluation by the Facilities Office to determine what kinds of improvements need to be done and what can be afforded.” The Facilities Office, Walton explained, evaluates all postal service capital improvement needs in the Greensboro District. Discussions about the downtown post office began about one year ago, he said, but there is currently no timetable for completing the evaluation.

That thinking has obviously changed, and Rice said it’s because the downtown post office is an “underutilized space.” She added, “We realized the building is too big and expensive to maintain so we wanted to explore other avenues.”

What About the Historical Features?

The downtown post office is listed on the National Register, and Rice said the Postal Service will “work with the state historic office to find out if there are any requirements,” but added that the Postal Service had “not yet started conversations with the state historic office.”

Nevertheless, Renee Gledhill-Earley, environmental review coordinator for the North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office, knows a lot more about what’s going on than the Postal Service will confirm.

“As an agency that is subject to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act and owning a National Register-listed historic property, the USPS will have to request the comments of the state historic preservation officer and work to avoid adversely affecting the historic property, if it decides to sell the property. In most cases involving post office buildings, the adverse effect is avoided by incorporating historic preservation covenants into the deed of sale that passes with the land. The covenants require that the building be preserved in perpetuity, maintained in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards, and that the State Historic Preservation Officer approve any physical changes,” Gledhill-Early said.

“It is our understanding that the Postal Service, having moved the sorting function out of the building, has only its boxes and retail space,” Gledhill-Early continued. “While they wish to maintain both at the location, they do not want the expense required to repair and maintain the building. Thus, they are looking to sell the building and lease back the space they need from the new owner. This is not the normal way that post office buildings are disposed of. Usually, the Postal Service determines the property excess to its needs and sells the building through the General Services Administration, which offers it at fair market value to other federal, then state, then local governmental agencies. If none of these are interested in the building, then it is offered to the public.”

Rice, however, would not confirm that the Postal Service intends to keep a presence in the building or even downtown. “We have not made any determination,” she said.

Gledhill-Early said she has contacted the appraiser—Robert Ball with Underdown Ball—and discussed with him the effect of covenants on the building's value and sent him several samples of covenants to help him better understand how they might affect the sale price.

What about the mural?

“The USPS considers the Daniel Boone mural and the postal boxes as personal property and they would not transfer with the real property,” Gledhill-Early said. “Rather, the USPS wants to identify a local nonprofit agency to accept covenants on the mural or lease so that the group will constantly monitor the state of the mural. From experience, USPS tries not to lease the mural to the new owner of the building as it is not always in the best interest of the mural.”

Commissioners Weigh In

On Monday night, the Watauga County Board of Commissioners unanimously passed a resolution requesting preservation of the downtown Boone Post Office. In the resolution, the commissioners asked that the sale of the property be subject to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, that the U.S. Postal Service maintain a viable post office operation in the building after the sale and that the U.S. Postal Service consider gifting the property to the county.

How To Comment

Rice emphasized that the Postal Service process is “transparent,” pointing out that notices of the potential sale and a request for public comment are displayed at the building.

“The public notice provides an opportunity for concerned citizens to provide input,” she said.

Anyone interested in the disposition of the downtown post office has until Monday, January 28, to comment on the proposed sale. Here’s how to register your opinion:

Realty Asset Management
160 Inverness Drive West, Suite 400
Englewood, CO 80112-5005
Attn: Gloria Charlson
303-220-6562 T/651-406-5816 F
gloria.m.charlson@usps.gov