Mail processing center to remain in Rio Grande Valley for border communities

McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) — U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez called the decision to keep open the U.S. Postal Service's main processing facility in McAllen a victory for border communities ahead of the holiday season.

The agency proposed moving its processing operations to San Antonio, some 250 miles north of the border, but several Texas lawmakers recently helped to stop the switch.

“This is a win for the Rio Grande Valley,” Gonzalez, D-Texas, said in a statement. “Every region of the country deserves efficient and reliable delivery services for their everyday needs, whether that’s sending gifts during the holiday season or paying their bills, and South Texas is no different. I’m pleased to see the USPS scrap this plan and listen to the people of our region.”

In April, Gonzalez, along with fellow Texas Democratic U.S. Reps. Joaquin Castro, Henry Cuellar and Greg Casar, sent a letter to U.S. Postmaster General Louis Dejoy expressing concerns about dismantling the processing facility in McAllen and moving operations to San Antonio, which is 250 miles north. They also worried that the San Antonio processing facility was too old and small to house new equipment necessary to sort more mail.

"Small businesses and residential customers in our districts depend on reliable USPS service to send packages, receive medications, pay bills, and vote in elections. Our communities have serious concerns about the impact of a new, centralized San Antonio processing facility will have on local USPS operations," they wrote.

USPS had proposed the switch saying it would save $2.7 million to $3.5 million the first year by closing the McAllen mail processing center, according to an agency document.

But that could have added a 500-mile roundtrip for a Christmas card sent from McAllen to McAllen. And the lawmakers told Dejoy that aside from adding transportation delays, they didn't believe the San Antonio facility could handle such an influx of additional letters and packages to process. They said delays with Christmas packages and letters in 2023 were proof that the change would have adverse affects.

"The facility is already struggling to process normal mail streams. Just this past holiday season, several local news stations reported that the San Antonio USPS had a major backlog of packages to deliver," they wrote.

USPS in March announced it was studying whether to shutter the McAllen processing facility "as part of a $40 billion investment strategy to upgrade and improve the Postal processing, transportation and delivery networks," according to a USPS document.

The Postal Service on Nov. 24 announced a list of 16 local processing centers that will remain open for processing local mail, including the McAllen facility.