Results tagged “postalservice”

The U.S. Postal Service released a revised list (PDF) of locations it is closing, due to its financial woes (it lost $7 billion in the fiscal year that ended September 30), and 16 NYC locations are listed. Seven are in the Bronx, seven are in Manhattan, and two are in Queens—full list after the jump. While it's not pretty, 53 locations were on the possible closing list in the summer.

News about the potential shuttering of post offices across the city is drawing scrutiny from politicians and residents, who are both upset and skeptical about the Postal Service's announcement. After a list of 53 post offices under consideration for closing was released—and then amended to include only 14 locations—the NY Times reports today that many just flat-out don't believe the USPS is cutting back on the cut-backs. Says New York postal union President Clarice Torrence, "On station closings they’ve always been very deceptive...If they amended the list they would let me know." Rep. Anthony Weiner, meanwhile, points to the closings confusion as an example of Newman-style post office ineptitude: "The way the U.S.P.S. has released information in dribs and drabs, it’s no wonder that they have been losing business." That loss of business is the main reason for the $7 billion budget hole facing the USPS this year—with too little mail and too many branches, USPS officials are hoping that enough closings might help the service "become more efficient."

Yesterday, the U.S.P.S. announced a number of cost-saving measures—closing six of 80 district offices and offering 150,000 employees early retirement— to save $100 million annually. The U.S.P.S., which had a $2.8 billion deficit in 2008, is reviewing other cuts, and Senator Charles Schumer is defending Staten Island's mail processing at the Manor Road Post Office, where all of the borough's mail gets its postmark. The U.S.P.S. is considering moving outgoing mail processing (and 300 employees) to Brooklyn or Queens; the P.O. would stay open, but the Staten Island Advance points out, "Letters addressed to Staten Island then would be brought back by truck for distribution here." Schumer' wrote to the Postmaster General, "It is unacceptable that the United States Post Office is even considering shutting down the outgoing mail facility at the Manor Road Post Office ... During this economic crisis, transferring these workers to Brooklyn or Queens would cost them time, transportation costs and could damage the quality of [mail] delivery for Staten Island."

With the U.S. Postal Service asking Congress to authorize a five-day work week for postal employes, down from the current six-day week, because of falling revenues, the NY Post turned to a well-known figure. However, that figure is known for only , not actually being one. Yes, the Post has a column from Wayne Knight, aka the actor who played Newman on Seinfeld.

; you can wait until 12/20 if you're sending it first-class and priority mail or until 12/23 if it's sent via express mail. And yesterday was also the busiest day of the year for FedEx (for Christmas delivery, you have until 12/17 to ship via FedEx Ground and until 12/23 via FedEx Express).

The U.S. Postal Service has increased first class stamp rates one penny to 42 cents and printed over one million extra one-cent stamps for people who didn't buy the Forever stamps. For those of you thinking, "Another stamp increase? Again?" the last increase was in May of last year.

Yesterday afternoon, a United State Postal Service tractor-trailer hit a fire truck in Laurelton, Queens, leaving a total of eight people injured. The truck had been responding to an alarm on 226th Street when the USPS vehicle hit it in the side at North Conduit Avenue and 225th Street. Then a taxi minivan crashed into the USPS truck.

Mayor Bloomberg has announced that the city will crackdown on the abuse of parking permits issued to civil servants, reducing the overall number by 20%. The change comes after the Post revealed in November that “149 separate government entities had qualified for the coveted placards last year, ranging from the state lottery to the US Navy recruiting office, which was allocated an astonishing 110 permits.”

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a police officer was struck on Richmond and Wilson Aves. on Staten Island, there was a large fight on Franklin Ave. and Empire Blvd. in Brooklyn, and a double homicide on Furman Ave. and East 237th St. in the Bronx.
• The US Postal Service is expecting to process one billion individual pieces of mail today, three times the daily average. The busiest day of the year is expected to be Wednesday.
• Interboro Institute, the two-year commercial college, is going out of business due to financial and regulatory problems.
• Oysters used to be one of the most plentiful animals in NY Harbor. Now they're making a recovery in one of the most unlikely of places--the Gowanus Canal.
• The Metropolitan Museum received quite the holiday present when the estate of Diane Arbus presented it with the photographer's entire archives as a gift.
• The airline industry is seeking in court to block a passenger bill of rights that originated in New York due to horrendous service.
• The city's looking to combat the obesity of New Yorkers (we're less obese than the rest of the country) by increasing the number of permits issued to food cart vendors selling fresh fruit and vegetables.
• Collaborative sleuthing tries to dig up why the planned Brooklyn College dorm that used to be under construction seems to be going nowhere.

READING: Have you thought about Rereading Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë lately? Writers and Brontë enthusiasts Jennifer Egan, Siri Hustvedt and Margot Livesey have! Tonight they celebrate the "heart-searing story of a plain, orphaned governess who struggles at an oppressive boarding school before moving to Thornfield, eventually falling in love with her mysterious employer, Mr. Rochester." The event coincides with a new Masterpiece Theatre presentation of Jane Eyre.

Update: WNBC reports that Cho Seung Hui sent a "box containing a manifesto of sorts, photographs and other material" (including videos) to NBC News. NBC News received it today and president Steve Capus turned the box over the FBI, but MSNBC says that the box was sent between the two shootings.

The package included a long, “rambling, manifesto-like statement embedded with a series of photographs,” Capus said. The material is “hard-to-follow ... disturbing, very disturbing — very angry, profanity-laced,” he said.

Continue reading "Questions About Gun Laws Surround VT Shooting "

The special US Postal Service-Star Wars R2D2 mailboxes have arrived, just in time to get acquainted with NYC-style slush. WNBC has a slideshow of a mailbox in Midtown, and we suppose the horrible sleet kept some fans away, lest they sully their Jedi robes.

Take this as your dose of levity for the day: As part of a big Star Wars stamp roll out for the film's 30th anniversary, the US Postal Service will have some mailboxes across the country wrapped with R2D2 decals.

Untitled, by Ryan at Citying.

Bad Veins had only played five shows before they played our Movable Hype show last week, and we hope you caught them. With a megaphone, guitars, keys, a telephone microphone, drums and a reel to reel named Irene...the two members in this band manage to sound like a full rock orchestra.

You might envy the charm of brownstone life, but apparently one pitfall is that the some mail carriers don't like to deliver the mail to them. The NY Sun examines the situation after some Brooklyn residents realized their mail wasn't coming. Mail carriers feel stoops are dangerous especially in winter weather, and lately some residents' mail has been "rained upon, blown away, and destroyed." You'd think the mail would have to be delivered at the house, but:

The U.S. Postal Service wants the ongoing tiffs between brownstone residents and their letter carriers to soon be a thing of the past. The Postal Service is attempting to phase out door delivery in Brooklyn and other cities across the country.

Continue reading "Some Mail Carriers Won't Stoop to Deliver Mail"

Yesterday morning, some subway service on different lines was disrupted due to a police investigation. It turns out that a woman was killed at 34th Street and 8th Avenue subway station. The Staten Island Advance reports that the woman was Grace Coughlin, a 53 year old US Postal Service Inspection employee. The motorman told police that Coughlin jumped in front of the train, but Couglin's family was told that she fell into the tracks. Police believe the death was a suicide, but they are still investigating. The Advance also notes that Coughlin usually worked in the Brooklyn office, but was "scheduled to work in Manhattan yesterday."

Apparently Sunday is the Metro sections Bloomberg real estate day. Last week we learned about the townhouse that Mike is buying to house his philanthropic foundation and this week we learn about how 731 Lexington Avenue, aka 151 East 58th, aka 1 Beacon Court, aka the Bloomberg Building got its many names.

"People thought of it as Alexander's, and we had to come up with something brand new, something significantly different," Melvyn H. Blum, executive vice president of Vornado, explained three years ago. "Our team — the owners; marketing, design and advertising consultants — struggled for a year or so and threw out thousands of ideas.

Continue reading "The Name Game"

Tareyton Williams, who was arraigned for the attempted murder of Michael Steinberg when he grabbed two cordless power saws from subway workers at the 110th and Broadway subway station last Thursday, was ordered for a psychiatric evaluation at Bellevue. Williams was also charged with first-degree robbery, fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property and third-degree criminal possession of a weapon in the strange attack. Williams was captured after punching another Upper West Side resident a few hours - he was charged with that man's assault.

ART: Tonight Dreamland: Coney Island 1905-1925 opens. The exhibit is opened through August 19th and features "original drawings, blueprints, and vintage photographs of New York City’s favorite amusement park, Coney Island."

We were really knocked out by Mazarin at Pianos last week. Very fun band. One can only hope that this week holds such surprise awesomeness. Some potential candidates:

In February of 2005, we booked New York band The Cloud Room to play our 2nd Movable Hype show. We had heard their song Hey Now Now and it instantly stuck in our head like peanut butter to the roof of one's mouth. This is how it was for everyone we talked to. We'd even venture to say that a song hasn't stuck in our head like that since.

Fie on you, US Postal Service! We couldn't find any 2 cent stamps left, in order to complement our Muppet stamps with some Navajo jewelry, Now we're faced with a huge mailing we need to do (hateful wedding etiquette that says reply card envelopes must be stamped also!), and the lines at the post office have been sooooo long. And angry. Gothamist could go to Mailboxes Etc., where they'll charge, oh, about 25% more for the new stamps, but if we're going to do that, we might as well get some personalized stamps. Personalized stamps cost more, but at least they'll have a picture of our favorite one-eye cat! (The one eye makes him look rakish!)

Coachella confirmations are starting to appear, after many many rumors. This year, the 6th, will be held April 30th to May 1st at Empire Polo Field in Indio, CA (same venue as last year). The lineup is still unconfirmed but you can probably expect Coldplay, Franz Ferdinand and the Killers. Others asked to perform this year are the Futureheads, Snow Patrol, Keane, Bloc Party, Secret Machines, Hot Hot Heat, Phoenix, The Bravery and Radio 4.

The Library of Congress on Columbus Day, another website about Columbus's journey and one we like better about the food he ate.

An article about honorary street names in NYC, the Sesame Street song "People In Your Neighborhood" talks about the postman, there's the group Postal Service, and back in the day, the postman would ring twice.

And a few months ago, the U.S.P.S. announced new stamps with the works of Isamu Noguchi. The wonderful Noguchi Museum in Queens, which has just reopened, also has a sculpture that Noguchi did of Bucky Fuller. These stamps are so elegant, Gothamist is motivated to to get started on our holiday cards.

The lead and the yellow jersey belongs to Frenchman, Thomas Voeckler. Voeckler, 25 years old, is now 9:35 ahead of the sixth place Armstrong who hung back to save his energy for the second half of the Tour. Voeckler decided to seize the opportunity to move into first and hopes to hold onto his lead through the mountains. While Armstrong may be too much to handle, Voeckler is also a strong climber. In another race last month, he won a difficult mountain stage, proving his mountain climbing grit.

Despite taking the lead so early in the 20 stage race, Armstrong said that the goal is not to hold on to the lead now, but to have it by the end of the race in Paris. "Our objective is not to defend the jersey. It's not in the best interest of the team. You have to preserve the strength of the team for the second half." With that in mind, USPS will set their sights on the second half of the race and the mountain stages where Armstrong thrives.