WASHINGTON D.C. - The U.S. Postal Service will not change its mind about closing any of the five Wisconsin mail processing centers it targeted a few weeks ago. Officials said Monday that processing facilities in Wausau, Eau Claire, La Crosse, Portage, and Kenosha will be among 252 centers closing nationwide starting in April. The Postal Service says the closings will help save $3 billion, which the agency says it must save to avoid bankruptcy next year. It means you can no longer count on next-day delivery -- a standard that's been in place for 40 years. The Postal Service says 28,000 jobs will be cut. Postal unions have said the closings could have been avoided by reducing overpayments to the agency's pension fund, set-aside requirements for workers' future health benefits, and steep discounts for bulk mailIn the La Crosse region, one postal official said a letter that's sent from one neighbor to another in Arkdale would make a 450-mile round trip to a processing center near Minneapolis -- and it could take a week for the letter to return. But postal officials say the delay will only be 2-to-3 days -- and they say they don't have the money to keep up with today's current service.
