Bray People

KILMAC’S POST OFFICE IS SHUT

AN POST SEEKING SUBMISSION­S FROM PUBLIC ON FUTURE OF OFFICE

- By MARY FOGARTY

THE POST OFFICE at Kilmacanog­ue closed on Tuesday – and will remain so indefinite­ly.

An Post said that this is due to circumstan­ces beyond their control. They are seeking submission­s from the public by March 8 with regard to the possibilit­y of providing a post office elsewhere in Kilmacanog­ue in the future.

The closure took place without notice on Tuesday, February 14.

All social welfare payments have been transferre­d to the Quinsboro Road office in Bray.

THE post office in Kilmacanou­ge will remain closed for an indefinite period after An Post confirmed that the contract has been terminated.

An Post said that this was due to ‘circumstan­ces beyond our control’.

‘An Post is considerin­g the future post office service provision at Kilmacanog­ue, which could include the permanent closure of the office,’ a spokespers­on said yesterday (Tuesday). ‘However, before the company takes any decision, interested parties who wish to do so are invited to submit their views on the matter no later than March 8, 2017.’

An Post said that in coming to a decision, they will take account of network coverage needs, the level of business at the office, customer access to service elsewhere and the capacity of neighbouri­ng offices to handle business if the office closes.’

A spokesman for An Post said that if there is to be a post of- fice in the village in the future, it will likely be at a different premises.

The facility closed last Tuesday without notice, and with immediate effect.

A spokesman for An Post said this week that they could not elaborate further on the circumstan­ces between the body and the contractor. Meanwhile, social welfare payments have been transferre­d to the ppost office on Bray’s QQuinsboro Road. Locals in Kilmac understood that the future of the post office was secured in 22014, when Ceire Kennedy took over as postmistre­ss following the death of her greataunt Angela Donnelly. This followed a campaign led locally by resident Paul Prendergas­t and Cllr Christophe­r Fox, who gathered 1,400 signatures appealing for the office to remain in that location. Angela ran the local post office from the 1960s, following in the footsteps of her mother Bridie Keenan.

Ceire worked alongside Angela for some time and unofficial­ly took over the reigns after her death in August 2013.

Deputy John Brady said that there is a lot of concern in the Kilmacanog­ue area, particular­ly following the closure of the Laragh post office, and subsequent campaign to re-open it.

‘ The post office is an integral part of a small, tight-knit community,’ said Deputy Brady.

Submission­s to An Post regarding Kilmac Post Office should be with Alan McLaughlin, Regional Operations Manager, Block 3B, GPO, O’Connell Street, Dublin 1, by March 8.

 ??  ?? TheTh post office in Kilmacanog­ue. LEFT:LE the notice posted up outside the office last week.
TheTh post office in Kilmacanog­ue. LEFT:LE the notice posted up outside the office last week.
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