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Resident asks city to pursue ZIP-code consolidation and a town hall after direct-mail drop stopped
Summary
A resident told the board that portions of Keene are split across ZIP codes and that direct-mail flyers previously delivered to all residents stopped about three years ago; the resident asked the board to help facilitate a town hall to pursue a postal-service ZIP-code consolidation.
A resident told the Type B board that parts of Keene fall into multiple ZIP codes and asked the board to help convene a town hall and pursue an address consolidation effort with the United States Postal Service.
The resident said Keene has 1,821 deliverable addresses and 305 post-office boxes and that portions of the city are spread across as many as three ZIP codes. He said his research showed part of the 76009 (Alvarado) ZIP code falls inside Keene’s corporate limits while most addresses are in 76031. The resident said that, historically, residents received direct-mail flyers (RedPlum/Advo-style) mailed to every mailbox but that distribution to Keene stopped about three years ago.
The resident argued retailers and developers rely on mail-circulation and ZIP-code counts when evaluating locations and said a consolidated ZIP code could better reflect the city’s address base. He requested board support to hold a town hall for interested residents to discuss a petition to the regional USPS district manager. "So I'm just asking, you know, that, maybe, there can be some support, you know, from the board, in helping helping with, you know, facilitate a town hall meeting or something like that along those lines," the resident said.
Staff and board members cautioned that the postal-service process is administratively complex and involves district managers and carrier unions; staff said the USPS allows such petitions but noted there are limits (a petition can be made only once every ten years) and that Saturday delivery differences and carrier-route economics can affect decisions. A board member recounted prior attempts to pursue ZIP-code changes at the congressional level and said the postal service has institutional reasons not to consolidate ZIP codes.
No formal board action was taken; staff suggested the item could be considered for outreach and a future public meeting if the board wishes to pursue it.
