U.S. Rep. Angie Craig wants constituent feedback about mail delivery problems

U.S. Rep. Angie Craig is asking constituents for feedback about problems receiving mail ahead of her visit to two south metro post offices July 21, her latest effort to solve ongoing issues with mail delivery.

She plans to meet with regional U.S. Postal Service officials at the Eagan and Prior Lake post offices and take tours of the buildings. Local mayors will also be invited.

"Since last winter, we have had just an extraordinary number of complaints directly into the office about service levels," Craig said in an interview, adding that they chose the two locations because they are still "hot spots" for complaints.

Craig organized her first survey about Postal Service levels in January and received over 3,300 responses from the Second Congressional District. She delivered those comments to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's office in Washington, D.C.

Residents of Prior Lake or Eagan, along with people living elsewhere in Craig's district, can submit comments online by Wednesday.

Cyndee Fields, an Eagan City Council member, said she's heard complaints from residents and had her own issues with mail delivery. In December, mail didn't come for days at a time, she said.

Her husband was waiting to receive a check from his employer and it never came, she said, so the employer had it delivered via another delivery company.

Fields said concerns have died down since then. Prior Lake Mayor Kirt Briggs also said that "complaints are way, way down" after peaking four to six months ago. At that time, he received phone calls from residents about mail delivery problems twice a week.

Craig said she wants to figure out the root problems that exist, including whether there are issues with timelines for hiring new workers. She added that if constituents need to lower their expectations for mail service, the Postal Service needs to make that clear.

"This won't be the last two post offices that I ask to visit, and frankly I expect cooperation when we want to visit," Craig said.