Photo by Maryland Route 5.

In an email sent to constituents last night, Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham reported that the U.S. Post Office located at 1915 14th Street NW will be closing on December 31.

Back in January, we learned that the post office was slated to be “closing in a few months,” so it appears that it the it may have extended its life span for a bit. (The branch was previously named on a list of offices that the USPS had planned to shutter by the end of 2010.) A seven-story condo development by Eric Colbert is slated to replace the post office and other businesses at 1905-1917 14th Street NW.

In Graham’s email — reprinted in full below — the Councilmember makes a call for residents to contact Postmaster of the District of Columbia Gerald Roane to protest the move. Given the reputation of the post office, we’re not sure that there’s going to be a real groundswell of support.

Dear Friends:

I am advised by the employees at the “T Street Post Office” (14th and Wallach Place NW) that operations will close on December 31st of this year. They have also been told that there is no plan to open a new post office location.

If this is in fact the case, it is a serious blow to Ward 1 postal services. As we all know, “T Street” is typically jammed with people, as is the much smaller operation at Kalorama and 18th St. The Temple Heights office at 1921 Florida Avenue is also very busy..

Losing “T Street” or any of those facilities will have an adverse impact to be sure.

Development is planned for that site and the USPS lease is expiring. But the new construction could have included a post office and, obviously, another site could still be found.

I have today contacted DC Postmaster Roane requesting confirmation that the “T Street” postal facility will be relocated, and can thus be counted on to serve our residents. I support Congresswoman Norton’s position that neighborhood post offices should not be reduced.

Please email the DC Postmaster and his assistant at these addresses:

Gerald.A.Roane@usps.gov
Postmaster of the District of Columbia

And his assistant
Sheila.vega.rogers@usps.gov