By Joel van der Veen
May 31, 2010

ELBOW - A meeting with Canada Post representatives on May 19 has failed to prevent the closing of the village post office, leaving Mayor David Cross feeling "disappointed."

"We didn't get everything we wanted," said Cross. "It disappointed us that there wasn't more flexibility."

Cross, members of village council and other business and community leaders met with four representatives of the crown corporation, in hopes of finding some way to keep the village from losing its post office.

Nonetheless, the postal counter - located in the Driftwood Studio and Gift Shop on Saskatchewan Street - will close on May 31, to be replaced by community mailboxes, located outside the Civic Centre on Aberdeen Street.

The mailboxes will hold regular mail and smaller parcels, with a drop box for outgoing mail, and stamps will remain available for sale at Driftwood.

But Elbow residents will now have to travel to the nearest post office - 12 kilometres away in Loreburn - to pick up larger parcels or items that require a signature, or for other postal services.

Cross said he attempted to run the two-hour meeting in a "problem solving format," asking questions and trying to understand Canada Post's mandate and business plan.

"Most of the ideas we put forward were turned down," said Cross.

Canada Post spokesperson Teresa Williams attended the meeting and said she was pleased with the progress made.

"It gave everyone an opportunity to voice their concerns," she said. "I think the concerns were addressed as well as we could."

But Driftwood Studio owner Kathy Korbo, who has run the postal counter since she took over the store in 1995, was not invited to the meeting.

"We didn't get to talk to them," she said.

Cross was critical of Canada Post, saying the corporation's plan would lead to inconvenience for local residents and businesses.

"Their business model is very cheap," he said. "They want somebody to give them free space."

He also said the situation reflects a change in their corporate mindset, acting as a "business" rather than a "service" - in which case, he said, a small community like Elbow would inevitably lose out.

"They don't give a damn, to put it bluntly," he said.

Canada Post sent a notice to customers served by the Elbow post office, informing them of changes to their service.

Mailing addresses and box numbers will not change, and there will be no gap in service. The mailboxes will be available around the clock, just as the post office boxes in Korbo's store were.

Keys for the mailboxes are being distributed at the post office until May 31; after that point, they will be available at the post office in Loreburn, with customer ID required for pick-up.

The leaderonline is a division of The Davidson Leader, Davidson, Saskatchewan, Canada.