US Postal Service makes final selection of new Lexington post office site
{This open lot will be the new home of the post office in Lexington, on the corner of West 8th Avenue next to the Stewart Physical Therapy offices and the former Compare Foods store. Photo from Google Earth}
The US Postal Service made its final selection of the new home for Lexington’s Post Office at the end of last year, notifying the city that the new offices will be at 722 South Main Street.
There has been much speculation about the demotion of the former Sealy factory on South State Street being the new home of the post office, but that is not the case. That site continues to be cleared of the former structures.
Demolition and clearing of the old Sealy facility continues on South State Street. Speculation about the site being the home of the new post office was incorrect. Photo by Elisabeth Strillacci
In a letter outlining the postal service’s choice of location to the city, Facilities Vice President Benjamin P. Kuo said the decision is final and “there is no right to further administrative or judicial review of this decision.”
The current post office at 110 North State Street is closing in order to allow for expansion of the Davidson County courthouse and jail facility next door.
The postal service has leased the county-owned building since 1984, but after a 2018 review of the current jail facilities, Davidson County Board of Commissioners ordered a needs assessment study. That study deemed an annex would be the best solution to a number of issues and violations cited in the review, which included overpopulation and plumbing issues dating back as far as 2015. The new building, which will be where the post office is now, is expected to cost $53 million and will connect to the existing courthouse and jail.
The county decided not to renew the postal service’s lease in 2022, but has worked with the organization in the interim as the postal service sought community input on a new location and began the site search.
According to the postal service, the new location is expected to allow the organization to continue to serve those in the Lexington area “for the long term,” and says it will continue to offer services at the existing North State Street office until the new facility is open.
“While the postal service is sensitive to the impact of this decision on its customers and the community, the postal service properly considered community input and this decision is consistent with postal service objectives,” wrote Kuo. “Postal service operations are not supported by tax dollars, To be self-sustaining, the postal service must make decisions that ensure it provides adequate and affordable postal services in a manner that is as efficient and economical as possible.”
The new location for the post office is on the corner of West 8th Avenue and South Main Street, beside the Stewart Physical Therapy offices. Across West 8th Avenue is the former Compare Foods store and Dollar General plaza.
