UPDATE: Post Office Gets New Chief Amid Service Disruptions

The expectation that the U.S. mail will be delivered on time 6 days a week leads to rankled nerves when the mailbox is unexpectedly empty, a situation a number of they found themselves in over the past several weeks.

The U.S. Postal Service acknowledged that mail delivery disruptions did occur in Deerfield recently due to route adjustments the service is instituting in order to fine-tune operations amid declining service. Additionally, the consolidation of Deerfield’s former district office into the Lakeland District, which formerly served only southern Wisconsin, has created personnel shifts, according to U.S. Postal Service spokesman Sean Hargadon.

As part of the changing structure, Deerfield’s local post office now has a new head of operations, Romeo Ramos. As officer-in-charge, Ramos is responsible for overseeing operations from mail distribution to front-counter service, according to Hargadon.   

“Certainly in light of recent events” the USPS was eager to see Ramos join the Deerfield office given his operations experience, Hargadon said.

Ramos, who started work in the Deerfield office earlier this week, said his eye is toward service amid the recent changes. “There were some issues,” amid the route adjustments, Ramos said.

Route adjustments were instituted 2 weeks ago, and the district consolidation was implemented about 1 month back. Deerfield residents contacted by Patch generally reported that service had normalized this week, although several noted changed delivery times. Initial complaints included the charge that no delivery had occurred on certain days.

The USPS has been under financial pressure in recent years due to a number of issues, including increasing use of internet communication over traditional mail service. The post office lost $8.5 billion in 2010.    

Hargodan said that the USPS will look at Deerfield’s new routes in about 2 months to ensure they are working effectively.