Schumer Calls on USPS to WORK WITH Local Community to Reopen WEST KILL POST Office

West Kill Post Office Has Served the Local Community Since 1833 , But Was Temporarily Closed In January 2025 After Fire Shut Down Small Rural Office – And Postal Services Have Not Yet Returned, Forcing Customers To Travel Over Seven Miles Away To Shandaken To Collect Mail Schumer Urges USPS To Fully Restore Postal Operations So Residents Can Easily Receive Medications, Checks & Bills, Packages, And Other Important Mail Schumer To USPS: West Kill Deserves A Post Office In West Kill A year and a half after a fire forced the closure of the West Kill Post Office, with no communicated plan for reinstatement , U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer called on the United States Postal Service (USPS) to work with the local community and fully restore mail services to the hamlet. The West Kill Post Office has served the Greene County hamlet for nearly two centuries, and Schumer said it provides a vital service to residents and the community. For years, Schumer has fought relentlessly to protect post offices across Upstate New York, demanding accountability from the U.S. Postal Service, ensuring rural residents have a voice in decisions that affect them, and defending the local institutions that keep small communities connected. “The West Kill Post Office is more than a place to pick up and drop off mail. For nearly two centuries, it’s been a community hub for residents. Upstate New Yorkers rely on their local post office to receive medications, pay bills, and connect with the rest of the world. But since a fire shut down the post office more than a year and a half ago, to receive mail, residents have been forced to travel over seven miles along a remote highway that lacks cell service and is dangerous to travel in the winter months,” said Senator Schumer . “Every day this post office remains closed, the community of West Kill is deprived of an essential service. For a year and a half, the West Kill community has been asking for answers but has heard nothing. West Kill deserves transparency and action, which is why I’m calling on the USPS to work with residents to immediately reinstate postal service in the town.” In January 2025, a fire forced the USPS to close the West Kill Post Office. For the past year and a half, hundreds of residents have been forced to travel 7.3 miles to access in-person mail services at an alternate site at the Shandaken Post Office. This is a dangerous drive along the remote stretch of State Route 42 through the Deep Notch, which has no cell service and is hard to travel in the winter. Residents have been willing to work constructively with USPS and local officials to find a solution but still lack a clear timeline or meaningful explanation regarding when and where full postal services will return to West Kill. They have emphasized the importance of the post office as a crucial community space , providing important services like access to prescription drugs, hunting and fishing licensing, electric vehicle charging, and Wi-Fi access. Schumer said the USPS must fully and transparently work with the community to restore full mail services in the town. Schumer’s letter to USPS Postmaster General David Steiner can be found HERE or below: Dear Postmaster General Steiner, I write with concern regarding the future of the West Kill Post Office, located at 30 Spruceton Rd, West Kill, NY 12492. It has come to my attention that in January 2025, the United States Postal Service (USPS) issued a temporary closure of the West Kill Post Office, citing smoke damage at the location. Since then, residents of West Kill have been forced to travel over seven miles to access in-person retail mail services. I urge you to act swiftly and diligently to immediately reinstate the West Kill Post Office and restore full mail services in West Kill, whether through a timely restoration of the existing location at West Kill or through securing an alternative location nearby in West Kill. Furthermore, I urge you to act with full transparency and cooperation in engaging the West Kill community on the Postal Service’s plans for reinstating the West Kill Post Office. The West Kill community deserves answers as to the future of their post office – and the USPS must act in full faith and transparency to provide the community with the answers it deserves, and work in close conjunction with the community in determining the future of the West Kill Post Office. For over a year and a half, the hundreds of residents in West Kill, a hamlet in the Town of Lexington, have been forced to travel 7.3 miles to access in-person mail services at an alternate site at the Shandaken Post Office, located at 22 State Route 42, Shandaken, NY 12480. This is a dangerous drive along the remote stretch of State Route 42 through the Deep Notch, which has no cell service and is hard to travel in the winter. The residents of West Kill have been harmed by the Postal Service’s delay in reopening the West Kill Post Office for far too long. Any further delay in reinstating the West Kill Post Office is unacceptable – the Postal Service must immediately act to reopen the West Kill Post Office such that the residents of West Kill will no longer have to face severe challenges to pick up their medications, receive their checks and billing documents, and other important mail. The West Kill community has also demonstrated its willingness to work constructively with USPS and local officials to find a solution. After more than a year and a half, however, residents still lack a clear timeline or meaningful explanation regarding when and where full postal services will return to West Kill. USPS must provide the community with a concrete plan and commitment to restoring local postal services. Therefore, I urge you to immediately act to reinstate the West Kill Post Office in West Kill, NY, and fully and transparently communicate and engage with the West Kill community on the future of the West Kill Post Office. Thank you for your attention to this important matter. I look forward to hearing your response. ###