Canada Post retail outlet in Brandon closing permanently

A retail Canada Post location in Brandon is shutting down at the end of the month.

This leaves residents in the city’s west end having to go halfway across town to pick up their packages.

“I get one package a week, maybe two packages every two weeks,” says Tarran Sanders, who only lives a few blocks away from the 7–11 on 34th Street that houses the postal location.

The next closest locations are at the Shoppers Mall in the south end of town three kilometres away, and downtown across from The Town Centre on Rosser Avenue, also three kilometres away.

For Sanders, this means a round-trip bus ride. “It’s a lot more of a hassle than it would be just to walk out around the corner here and get the package,” he says.

A number of area Brandonites CTV News spoke with aren’t pleased to hear about the prospect of not having a west end mail location.

“My partner’s the one that gets mail from there, he gets a lot of registered mail, and he can’t drive,” says Jen Shymanski. “So now I have to take him and drive him across town to go to a different post office. It’s very inconvenient for those who have transportation issues and have to arrange rides.”

“More so maybe for the elderly people, this might have been (an easier location) for them to get into,” says Drew Hawkins. “If they’re going to the downtown one, I think it’s very limited parking. Might be harder for them to get into.”

“I find it extremely inconvenient now that there’s not going to be a location anywhere in the west end of Brandon to be able to get our mail, or mail out packages and parcels,” says Tracy Wray.

In a written statement, Canada Post said that it’s looking for a new location to hold a postal outlet, and the reasons for the closure are beyond its control.

CTV News has also reached out for comment from 7–11, but no response has been received at this time.

The notice posted on 7–11’s door says that PO Box customers will be able to get their remaining months refunded, and that any remaining parcels for pickup after the 31st will be brought to their main depot on Douglas Street, on the other side of town.

WINNIPEGOSIS CANADA POST OFFICE REOPENING AFTER STAFF SHORTAGES

The post office in Winnipegosis is set to reopen on Tuesday as the location has been dealing with staff shortages.

Canada Post told CTV News Winnipeg the post office was closed for several days during the week of July 25 and reopened on Aug. 3.

However, it was closed again on Monday.

"Customers were informed they could temporarily pick up their mail at the Dauphin Post Office for today," a spokesperson said in an email.

The spokesperson noted the office will open again on Tuesday for normal hours for the rest of the week.

"We remain committed to serving the people of Winnipegosis and we are in the process of hiring temporary employees to further support the post office going forward."

Canada Post said it apologizes to customers for the inconvenience and thanks them for understanding.

Winnipegosis is a community of around 700 people located four hours northwest of Winnipeg.

-with files from CTV's Devon McKendrick