Temporary post office brings relief to Fort Myers Beach residents

Reporter: Asha Patel Writer: Joey Pellegrino
Published:

 

Thanks to a new temporary post office, Fort Myers Beach residents will finally be able to send and receive mail right from the island after nearly four months of driving out of the way to do so.

People in Fort Myers Beach have had to drive for miles all the way to Page Field, the post office location on Airport Road, just to send a letter or pick up some flyers or bills. Starting Monday, a temporary facility in the parking lot of the Fort Myers Beach Post Office will let all customers in zip codes 33931 and 33932 pick up their mail and packages.

This temporary post office will offer retail services and post office boxes as well as mail and package pickup. Those who had a post office box at the original post office can pick up their new key by showing a photo ID, and your box number will remain the same. Postal services are currently evaluating which locations are safe to resume residential and business mail delivery. Until then, people will have to come to the parking lot.

The damaged Fort Myers Beach Post Office. Credit: WINK News

Jim Atterholt, vice mayor of Fort Myers Beach, spoke to WINK News about the future of the island.

“There’s a tremendous optimism as we go forward for the future,” Atterholt said. “We’re hearing so many really exciting plans for redevelopment, and so many people are working hard to rebuild their lives. And I just think… I just I’m extremely optimistic about the future of Fort Myers Beach.”

The temporary post office will be open every day from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. it will also be open on Saturday at those same hours, but retail services will not be available. It will be closed on Sunday.

The need to drive to Page Field for mail was “a huge inconvenience,” Atterholt said. “And I understood, right after the storm, why they had to do it. But we needed to get a place back on the island as soon as possible.”

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