Westside Pavilion Post Office Slated for Closure Review

The United States Postal Service announced Tuesday they will be studying 3,700 post offices to determine the need for physical retail locations. USPS currently has nearly 32,000 offices nationwide.

Although the USPS did not release the timeline for the study, they said with more people using web applications and smart phones to shop, pay bills and communicate, they need to reevaluate.

The Westside Pavilion post office is listed for review. This only means the USPS will consider closure. Branches in Westwood Village, mall and on Wilshire Boulevard are not under review.

West LA post offices to be studied:

For a complete list of the post offices USPS will be studying in California, click here.

For a complete list of the post offices USPS will be studying nationwide, click here.

Although the USPS did not release the timeline for the study, they said with more people using web applications and smart phones to shop, pay bills and communicate, they need to reevaluate.

“Today, more than 35 percent of the Postal Service's retail revenue comes from expanded access locations such as grocery stores, drug stores, office supply stores, retail chains, self-service kiosks, ATMs and usps.com, open 24/7," Postmaster Patrick Donahoe said in a statement to the media. "Our customer's habits have made it clear that they no longer require a physical post office to conduct most of their postal business."

The USPS is referring to third-party retailers, such as local grocery stores or drug stores, as "Village Post Offices." They say if these locations offer access to postal services, they may be a successful alternative to a traditional post office.

“The Postal Service of the future will be smaller, leaner and more competitive and it will continue to drive commerce, serve communities and deliver value,” Donahoe added.

 Review is first step, closure possible

The review process does not mean closure is a sure thing. The Huffington Post reports the USPS announced a review of 1,400 offices in January, but has closed only 280 of those so far and spared another 200.

According to an article from UPI, the closure review covers about 11 percent of post offices around the country. There are more than 31,000 in all.

The Huffington Post says the USPS lost more than $8 billion in 2010. Its article describes an alternative to the traditional branch, the so-called Village Post Office.

“By working with third-party retailers, we’re creating easier, more convenient access to our products and services when and where our customers want them,” Donahoe said today. “The Village Post Office will offer another way for us to meet our customers’ needs.”