THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 6, 1995 TAG: 9501040156
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 08 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PATRICIA HUANG, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 59 lines
The holiday rush was over at Chesapeake's main post office on Battlefield Boulevard Tuesday, but the lobby and parking lot were mobbed with customers anyway.
Beginning Jan. 1 at 12:01 a.m., a higher postage rate took effect, raising the price of a first-class stamp to 32 cents. The price to mail a postcard also rose one penny, to 20 cents.
``This is unusual today,'' said William Bunn, manager of customer services, who was away from his usual post in the building and directing traffic outside in the parking lot. ``I guess everybody waited until the last minute to get (the new stamps).''
Drivers inched in and out of parking spaces as Bunn and another postal clerk, wearing orange traffic bibs, waved them on.
``This is the busiest I've ever seen it,'' Bunn said. ``Battlefield (Boulevard) in itself is usually a nightmare, but this is making it that much worse.''
In the confusion of the lunchtime traffic, two cars collided when traffic stopped short on Battlefield Boulevard in front of the post office and a few yards before the traffic signal. Two police officers quickly arrived to direct traffic around the accident.
Inside the post office, customers queued up in long, winding lines even after two additional service positions were opened to accommodate the crowd.
In the corner of the lobby, postal clerk Jack Salvato was offering sheets of three-cent stamps for sale at a makeshift stand.
``I've been out here for about an hour, and I've sold about 4,000 stamps,'' he said.
``We've had these new stamps for some time,'' he said, ``but everyone's coming in today. I can understand, though. I knew the postage rate was going up, but I still have 46 29-cent stamps at home myself.''
The U.S. Postal Service offers a variety of three-cent stamps, Salvato said, but the only 32-cent stamps out so far are the ``G series'' stamps, which feature the image of the American flag.
``. . . This is a pretty one,'' Salvato said of the three-cent Eastern Bluebird stamp. ``I was selling a different one before. It wasn't a pretty one. I can't remember what it was.''
Salvato was down to his last few sheets of stamps when more customers poured in. He yelled to another postal worker to bring him some more.
``Can I get a thousand of those?'' one man asked.
Salvato checked. Nope. Only 800 left.
``Oh well, can you give me the 800 then?'' the man asked. ``You got to do what you got to do.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by STEVE EARLEY
Clerk Jack Salvato, right, sells 3-cent stamps at a makeshift stand
in the lobby of Chesapeake's main post office on Battlefield
Boulevard.
by CNB