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The new Camp Lemonier Post Office, located south of the dining facility and adjacent to the motor pool, is scheduled to open in October.
April 1, was the planned opening date for the new structure, but construction wasn't finished. Funding has been an issue in the length of time spent on this project.
"I know when I first got here we were all excited about it," Petty Officer 2nd Class Bill Carroll, a store keeper, said. "Everybody has been anxiously waiting for it."
Several changes to the original plan have also caused delays, according to Navy Chief Postal Clerk Frederick Christian, who is overseeing the last phases of the new post office. One of the adjustments was changing the facility to a single-story building, he said. A second story can still be added in the future if needed.
The previous commanding officer of Camp Lemonier, Navy Capt. P.J. Gibbons, was the first to propose a new post office for the expeditionary base. He noticed postal employees working outside, in the Djiboutian heat, and a confined area inside.
"The present facility was not designed to house a post office," Christian said. "The new post office will give the employees air-conditioning, more room to work, more storage room, new equipment, and it will take the employees and packages out of the hot sun and occasional rain."
The postal workers are excited for the project to finish and are ready to move into the new facility.
"The post office is going to be awesome," said Kim Baumgardner, custodian of postal effects. "We will all be working together now; we will be more of a team instead of split up."
Postal operator Eddie Wilson said customers will notice a drastic improvement.
"The new post office will be more efficient and will have more supplies for the customers to mail their packages," he said. "We will have the Captain's Channel on in the large new lobby that will explain to the customers how to mail their packages properly."
Mail will still take approximately eight to 12 days to arrive at Stateside destinations. However, Christian believes the new facility will be 100 percent better, for employees and customers.
| Date Taken: | 09.09.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 09.09.2009 03:10 |
| Story ID: | 38489 |
| Location: |
| Web Views: | 465 |
| Downloads: | 352 |
This work, New Camp Lemonier Post Office nearing completion, by MSgt Carlotta Holley, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
