Committee accepts post office offer, terminates Highbridge lease

Ashland County highway staff reported that the U.S. Postal Service (through a contractor) sought to terminate a previously negotiated lease for a Highbridge site, citing a need for a retaining wall. Highway staff said the site had been prepared and notified the post office that necessary site work (water, power, sewer, septic) had been completed.

Matt Erickson said the post office offered to reimburse county expenses and to pay one year’s lease payment in exchange for terminating the lease. "They came back and they said, they want to terminate the lease… they are offering to pay us all of our expenses plus a 1 year lease payment," Erickson said. Committee members described repeated changes by the post office during negotiations and expressed frustration at the process.

The committee voted to accept the post office’s terms and terminate the lease; staff were thanked and directed to collect the agreed payment and close out the matter. The committee asked staff to leave the door open for future discussions if the post office later changes its position.

Ending: County staff will finalize the settlement payment and record the lease termination; no additional county expenditure was approved.