Discrepancy in USPS numbers

Numbers don’t add up for closure of processing center, chamber study based on estimates

By Chris Stroisch, Correspondent

The Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce (GSCC) recently released an economic impact study to determine how the possible closure of the U.S. Postal Service’s mail processing facility in Springfield would financially impact Sangamon County. But the study’s findings are at odds with the Postal Service’s recent feasibility study.

In September, the Postal Service announced plans to close 252 of the 487 mail processing facilities in the United States, including nine in Illinois. Springfield’s Cook Street facility was on the list, along with facilities in Bloomington, Carbondale, Centralia, Chicago, Effingham, Fox Valley, Quincy and Rockford.

Following the announcement, GSCC contacted the Northern Illinois University Regional Development Institute to conduct a study to determine how the loss of the 300 employees at the Springfield facility would affect employee compensation, county output and gross county product, also known as the county GDP.

“Our belief is that there is typically a great deal of emotion around the potential of a closure of a facility of this type, as well there should be,” said Erich Bloxdorf, president and chief executive officer of the GSCC, as to why a study was needed. “We also wanted to have hard facts to back up the significant negative impact to our community should the processing center be closed.”