South Bend mail processing and distribution center moving to Fort Wayne
Posted: Feb 23, 2012 8:54 PM EDT | Updated: Nov 5, 2014 6:33 PM EDT
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- After months of speculation, more than 200 jobs at the South Bend mail processing and distribution center are on the line!
On Thursday, the U.S. Postal Service announced that it is moving!
The post office will stay open, but once the transition happens, the center will move about 100 miles southeast to Fort Wayne.
The retail operations and Business Mail Entry Unit will stay open.
Mary Dando with the U.S. Postal Service told us the transition won't happen until after May 15th.
The relocation will affect more than 200 employees in South Bend. Dando said on Thursday no one has been laid off.
She said they’re still working out the details of the move, but some jobs will be moved to Fort Wayne. Other employees will be offered different positions in South Bend.
We called the St. Joseph County Chamber of Commerce about what they thought about the news.
President Jeff Rea said they were somewhat surprised that it appears the Fort Wayne location was chosen over the South Bend one to stay open. He said when comparing the two, many thought South Bend had a better location and easier access to planes, trains, and highways.
Some checking their mail on Thursday agree.
“Seems like it’d be more sensible to keep this one open for that being more centrally located and closer to Chicago, Indianapolis, the other two major distribution centers,” said Kevin Greenwood.
Three other Processing and Distribution Centers will be moving including Gary, Kokomo, and Terre Haute.