Over 150 people attended a rally on Monday, Jan. 8, to restore the post office in downtown Montpelier, which was damaged in the July 2023 flood and has not yet been restored. Montpelier residents have been driving to Barre City for mail and packages.
“In the days after the July flood, the residents and friends of Montpelier showed up,” said Ben Doyle, chair of the Montpelier Commission for Recovery and Resilience. “But 182 days later, you know who hasn’t shown up? United States Postal Service leadership.”
“I’m talking about Postmaster (Louis) DeJoy,” said Doyle. Vermont congress members had previously sent a public letter to DeJoy last October, asking him to work to open Montpelier’s post office as soon as possible, and improve disaster response.
“Keep your voices loud,” said Kathryn Van Haste, state director for Sen. Bernie Sanders. “We have struggled to hear from the postal service in Washington about what’s happening here. But the one thing they could tell us,” she said, “was the number of complaints they have gotten about the Montpelier post office. And I can tell you that it is more than double the complaints they’re used to getting.”
U.S. Sen. Peter Welch called for action from the federal government to return postal services to Montpelier.
U.S. Rep. Becca Balint speaking in front of the post office on Monday.
A young demonstrator.
Rosemary and Frances Doyle hold signs on State Street in front of the post office.
Silas Gwinn, 7, holds a sign expressing concerns about the post office.
