Delta wants to make sure the public knows that municipal hall isn't deciding where Canada Post will install community mailboxes.
That was the message delivered recently by the Corporation of Delta to residents as Canada Post gets ready to replace home delivery in Ladner with community mailboxes.
"Delta has had no say in the locations of the community mailboxes, as the authority to determine the locations rests solely with Canada Post," states a notice on the municipal website. "We support our residents and share the concerns of the community regarding the chosen locations for the community mailboxes."
Mayor Lois Jackson echoed that frustration, telling the Optimist the agency had promised to work with civic staff but ultimately will place the mailboxes wherever it wants.
Noting complaints about the conversation have reached municipal hall, Jackson said she's not sure if the locations have been decided. She said Delta also hasn't been informed when Tsawwassen or North Delta will transition to community mailboxes.
"I am assuming there is two-way dialogue going on but we have to see if it's actually happening or if it's just lip service," the mayor said. "We want to make sure we have input in the system because there is a lot of people not very happy."
Canada Post late last year announced that Ladner would be the first Lower Mainland community to see home mail delivery eliminated, a move that will impact around 4,900 households this October. Residents received mail-in surveys on where they'd like to see mailboxes located.
It's part of Canada Post's five-year-cost-cutting plan that began in several communities last year. The plan will see over five million addresses across the country switched to community mailboxes.
The agency's communication department told the Optimist that "knocking on doors of those households that live adjacent to proposed locations" has been completed and it is now in the process of finalizing the mailbox locations.
Canada Post says it's committed to ensuring the transition will be handled responsibly and with respect towards customers and municipalities.
Canada Post also says it will be sensitive to the needs of seniors and the disabled, developing alternative approaches for people with significant mobility challenges.
As far as Tsawwassen and North Delta, they will not be converted in 2015, although no dates have been announced.
Delta hasn't gone on record as opposing the transition, let alone as far as Hamilton, which has amended a bylaw so Canada Post is charged a fee and needs city consultation for every mailbox placed on public land. Canada Post has countered that it's under federal law, which trumps municipal regulations.
