USPS Lost $180K on Office That Never Opened

A post office near Scranton, Pa., has run up a $180,000 tab for the US Postal Service—without ever having opened for business. Since June 2008, USPS has been paying about $31,000 a year to lease a property in South Abington Township; it's at last due to be "occupied" starting this June, the Scranton Times-Tribune reports. "The lease started on the building in June 2008 with the expectation to complete the construction to occupy the building for postal operations soon thereafter," says a Post Office rep.

But concerns ranging from drainage issues to traffic have plagued the spot. A development plan was submitted in 2010, but the Post Office withdrew after construction began. It later returned; then a berm built to prevent flooding got in the way of a planned driveway. An existing driveway, meanwhile, raised driving safety issues. Last year, the township said the Post Office could use a nearby road if it would pay for widening. If that plan goes through, construction should begin again. "We have been anxiously awaiting for them to come along," says a local business exec. It's not the only recent quirk to hit the USPS. (More Pennsylvania stories.)