Crabtree post office will close in June

RALEIGH -- The post office at Crabtree Valley Mall, which has served customers for almost 40 years, will close next month - the most recent victim of changing times.

The U.S. Postal Service lost $8.5 billion in the most recent fiscal year as people increasingly turned to the Internet to pay their bills and communicate, and as competition from FedEx and UPS grew stronger. That has forced the Postal Service to close stations and scale back services.

The Crabtree station will close June 24, shortly before its lease runs out with the mall, a Postal Service spokeswoman said. The closure would come about six months after the State University Station off Hillsborough Street closed, ending decades of service for N.C. State University students, employees and neighbors.

Crabtree customers greeted the news with surprise and sadness, saying they can't imagine Crabtree Valley without the post office, tucked away in a little brick building behind the Barnes & Noble.

"This is my post office," said D.R. Wright, hustling through afternoon errands. "If they move it away from here, it's bound to be inconvenient."

Raleigh has 15 post offices, including seven within five miles of Crabtree Valley. The closest station is 3.6 miles away. Delivery and retail services will move to North Hills Station on Six Forks Road, which offers similar services, including an automated 24-hour kiosk.

Customers will be able to keep the same post office box numbers and ZIP codes.