FERNANDEZ-ALVARADO valvarado@chespub.com
The Trappe post office was closed for construction for two years beginning in October 2022.
A sign on the front door of the Trappe post office warns of asbestos in July 2023.
TRAPPE — Residents of Trappe celebrated the reopening of the town’s post office this week after it had been under construction for two years.
In Oct. 2022, the Trappe Post Office was forced to close due to a burst pipe. Mark Wahl, strategic communications specialist for the U.S. Postal Service, said construction had to be extended due to complications with the removal of asbestos.
According to Trappe Town Council President Brian Schmidt, the closure of the post office caused significant inconvenience to residents of the town.
Schmidt noted many residents had to travel to Cambridge to pick up their mail since there were many homes in Trappe that could not have mail delivered directly.
“All those people, including the town hall, had to drive to Cambridge every day to pick up mail,†Schmidt said. “So the fact that we can now get our mail a lot closer is nice. And the services that (the post office) offers, not just for the town, but for the people outside of the town as well.â€
According to Schmidt the construction process was slow and disorganized and lacked good communication with town leadership. Schmidt said the town had a hard time communicating with anybody who knew anything about the post office and its ongoing progress.
Schmidt said many of Trappe’s residents were pushed to be creative when it came to obtaining their mail. Older constituents of the town could not easily drive to the post office in Cambridge.
Schmidt said he knew of one resident who changed her address to one of her neighbor’s. According to Schmidt, the resident was also caring for her husband whose health was failing, and the closure of the post office created another burden for her.
Ann Frock, a resident of Trappe, said before the closing of the post office she had maintained the same P.O. Box for 28 years. She had to find new arrangements to get mail after the office’s closure. Frock said she would drive to Cambridge to retrieve her mail and her friend’s mail.
“We’re really glad that it reopened, and we’re sorry that it took so long,†Frock said. “And the whole community wishes that we would have been more informed about what was going on. But we’re just really glad to have it back open again.â€
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