Am I the only one who misses the three missing car-side drop off mailboxes by the library?

Am I the only one who misses the three missing car-side drop off mailboxes by the library?

At first I thought they were being removed to be refurbished, but they never came back!

;-(

You're not alone. Quite convenient they were.

Useless, as car drop off, where they are now.

They were my go-to mailboxes most of the time.  

Maplewood did a similar thing at the train station - moved the box to the passenger side so that you either had to have a passenger drop it in or, if alone, park and  walk around the car to put in your mail.  

Must have been a joint decision by both towns to go user hostile with the mail   

I agree with the above.  I miss the mailboxes on the driver side at various places. It is much more difficult now.  I seldom have a passenger and therefore have to do the park and walk to deposit. This will be worse in the winter.  Plus I often have trouble walking because of neuropathy from chemo.  

I have no idea how this is supposed to make life better or easier in SOMA. Who thinks these things out?  Do they have any common sense?  Or do they just plot things out on paper with no understanding of the real world?  

Millburn joined the pack. There is a "drive-up on Millburn Avenue, about 200 ft. from the town hall. But there are two parking spaces in front of it. So the only people who get to use it are the two people who parked their car in front of it, put their mail in it and then took their kids to see "The Grinch" for two hours.

Sheena?  Vic?

As a pedestrian, I have the opposite problem.  The book return at Hilton library is positioned so that you have to walk into an active parking lot to use it.  For those of us who don't or prefer not to drive everywhere, having drive up mailboxes or book returns with no pedestrian alternative is a potentially dangerous alternative. 

I have the same issue.  Drive-up mailboxes are a real convenience, and we used to have both kinds of mailboxes around the train station, to Joan's point.

I've been driving to the Springfield post office (on Mountain Avenue) and using their drive up mailbox. (They also have ample parking for post office business.)  Also, if you are in the neighborhood, the post office in Livingston (on Route 10, just west of the intersection with South Livingston Avenue) has 4 drive up boxes, and plenty of parking for postal business. (I find myself on Route 10 with some frequency, so I just stay on Route 10 rather than take Northfield Road home.)

I think there was some thought of replacing the drive-up mailbox in Maplewood at the end of the Ricalton square parking lot, but that never happened. It would be great to put another drive up mailbox either there, or at the exit of the lot opposite the post office.

I agree about missing the boxes, but I would think that this is a postal issue, not a Sheena and Vic issue.  Maybe ask the postmaster why?

FilmCarp said:
I agree about missing the boxes, but I would think that this is a postal issue, not a Sheena and Vic issue.  Maybe ask the postmaster why?

 I believe that the amount of mail in boxes is checked periodically, and if it falls below a certian level then that particular mail box is removed.   Though if the mail boxes in question are the ones I’m thinking of then I’m surprised if they were removed for being underutilized 

The mailbox we're all missing was removed accidentally by a car. At least that's what I was told when I inquired at the post office a few months ago. They said it would be replaced. Somehow I doubt it.

galileo said:
The mailbox we're all missing was removed accidentally by a car. At least that's what I was told when I inquired at the post office a few months ago. They said it would be replaced. Somehow I doubt it.

 If you’re talking about the one in Maplewood then it has been replaced in a different (inconvenient) part of the lot. 

On the other hand Im pretty sure that the three in South Orange were taken out on purpose 

I don’t understand the rationale for removing driver side mailboxes. 

 As a side note to these specific mailboxes, I have a funny story.  I’m guessing about 30 years ago, I drove up to mail something, but for some reason had to get out of my car and managed to lock the keys in the car.  A very nice woman, who didn’t know me pulled up and I asked/begged her to drive me to my house so I could retrieve my spare set ok keys. She graciously did and her parting words were that her husband wouldn’t believe it. 

Scully said:

galileo said:
The mailbox we're all missing was removed accidentally by a car. At least that's what I was told when I inquired at the post office a few months ago. They said it would be replaced. Somehow I doubt it.

 If you’re talking about the one in Maplewood then it has been replaced in a different (inconvenient) part of the lot. 
On the other hand Im pretty sure that the three in South Orange were taken out on purpose 

 The catagory is South Orange Specific and they mention the mail boxes being near the library.  I believe they’re talking about the driver’s side mailboxes at Comstock in South Orange. 

spontaneous said:

Scully said:

galileo said:
The mailbox we're all missing was removed accidentally by a car. At least that's what I was told when I inquired at the post office a few months ago. They said it would be replaced. Somehow I doubt it.

 If you’re talking about the one in Maplewood then it has been replaced in a different (inconvenient) part of the lot. 
On the other hand Im pretty sure that the three in South Orange were taken out on purpose 

 The catagory is South Orange Specific and they mention the mail boxes being near the library.  I believe they’re talking about the driver’s side mailboxes at Comstock in South Orange. 

Possibly, but the single box In Maplewood was then brought up down thread after which Galileo spoke of ‘the box’ (not boxes) 

At some past time, those mailboxes had openings on each side of the box, one for pedestrians and one for drivers.  And (to Maplewood PO!), the box should be positioned so that if you drive up to it, it is on the DRIVER side, like it used to be.  I'm not sure why they can't put one in the NJT lot across Maplewood Avenue from the new PO ...

Considering the parking problem in front of the Maplewood PO having a drive-up box somewhere convenient, such as used to be in the parking lot by the old Maplewood PO would be a good idea.

Mailboxes are a vanishing breed.  the two closest to my mom's house (not in SOMA) disappeared years ago.  And the mailbox across the street from my office in the city disappeared years ago.  The volume of mail has been decreasing and with more and more people paying bills online, the need will continue to decline as will the number of mailboxes.  

I was  told there is a shortage of mailboxes to replace old/broken ones and they do not have it in the budget to have new ones fabricated.  I think they just repair old ones now and that is the main reason for the delay in getting a replacement.  

And the elected official to contact would  be your congress person.  

I don't think this is a relatively new policy.  Predating Internet commerce and on line bill pay, the mail box on the nearest corner to my house was blown up many years ago, reportedly by a cherry bomb being lit and tossed inside.     That mailbox still has not been replaced.  Others in the neighborhood have been disappearing less violently for years.

I walk to one of two in my neighborhood.

Scully said:

galileo said:
The mailbox we're all missing was removed accidentally by a car. At least that's what I was told when I inquired at the post office a few months ago. They said it would be replaced. Somehow I doubt it.

 If you’re talking about the one in Maplewood then it has been replaced in a different (inconvenient) part of the lot. 
On the other hand Im pretty sure that the three in South Orange were taken out on purpose 

The ones in Maplewood were moved due to the construction of the new building that benefits all of Maplewood humanity.

yahooyahoo said:

Scully said:

galileo said:
The mailbox we're all missing was removed accidentally by a car. At least that's what I was told when I inquired at the post office a few months ago. They said it would be replaced. Somehow I doubt it.

 If you’re talking about the one in Maplewood then it has been replaced in a different (inconvenient) part of the lot. 
On the other hand Im pretty sure that the three in South Orange were taken out on purpose 

The ones in Maplewood were moved due to the construction of the new building that benefits all of Maplewood humanity.

Ah yes but the construction is long done - time to return it to it’s original position then.

I do miss the ones in the Ricalton parking lots when you could drop of mail from the driver's side without exiting the car.  

A recent find in SO is becoming the one I use for non-critical mail. It is on the corner of Valley by the wine store across the street from the Stop and Shop.  I can get groceries, stop for wine or beer and drop off mail. Not on the driver's side, but getting out of the car to buy wine is already on my list of stops.  

mikescott said:

I was  told there is a shortage of mailboxes to replace old/broken ones and they do not have it in the budget to have new ones fabricated.  I think they just repair old ones now and that is the main reason for the delay in getting a replacement.  

The mailbox on corner of Wyoming and West End Rd appears to be brand new (or the product of a masterful complete overhaul). Shiny new hardware a fixing it to the ground, too. No swinging door; just a thin slot for mail.

Last I inquired (some time ago) at SO post office about the postmaster’s name: “We don’t have one. We have an OIC - Ms. Ali”.

FYI, passed by today and there is one box (looks new) in that spot near SO library.

And again it disappeared!

AND as of this morning, THEY ARE BACK!!!!!