Addresses to get new identities

Two ZIP codes to reflect Coral Springs on mail

CORAL SPRINGS — Since hewas elected in 2010, U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-West Boca, whose district includes Coral Springs, has been trying to resolve a sticking point.

This month, he declared victory after several conversations with the U.S. Postal Service that he says took a “considerable amount of time.” Starting immediately, Coral Springs residents who dealt with ZIP code angst will have their addresses properly referred to as “Coral Springs” by the U.S. Postal Service. The two ZIP codes that now have their new identity are 33065 and 33071.

This means companies that use post office information to determine cities for mailings will finally get the right information— even for junk mail.

“With all these addresses standardized for accuracy, Coral Springs will hopefully receive even better delivery, and more importantly, it's a long-standing issue that’s been resolved,” Deutch said.

Mayor Skip Campbell said

the issue of Coral Springs being called “Pompano Beach” by the postal service was a recurring problem brought to him by numerous voters, including his wife.

“It bothered my wife,” he said. “All the time my wife is on the phone trying to convince Amazon we’re Coral Springs and not‘ Pompano’ Beach. They can’t even pronounce it right,” Campbell said. “It’s difficult convincing somebody from Minnesota that Coral Springs is a city by itself. It doesn’t sound like an issue, but it is an issue.”

Jokes Pompano Beach Commissioner Rex Hardin: “It takes an act of Congress to get the post office to change.” He said he knows “it’s been a longstanding issue” and some areas in Deerfield Beach and Coconut Creek also default to Pompano.

“Everything was funneled through Pompano Beach for the longest time,” he said. “Hey, Pompano Beach, we are a farreaching city.”

Debbie Fetterly, spokeswoman for the postal service, explained why some ZIP codes at times identify another city. “The default city name reflects the office responsible for the administration of that ZIP code,” Fetterly said. “In this instance, Coral Springs .... is a branch of the Pompano Beach Post Office.”

Other Coral Springs addresses still may deal with other cities on their mail. Coral Springs ZIP codes 33067 and 33076 overlap with neighboring cities and will not reflect this change, at least for now.

“The Postal Service is always looking for ways to accommodate the requests of cities and municipalities for the purpose of community identity,” Fetterly said.