Lucille Alouah believes a neighborhood should have a library and an accessible postal mailbox — and she’s fighting to keep both in her pocket of Westville.
Alouah, 74, who has lived in Westville for 25 years, created a petition against the planned removal of a United States Postal Service (USPS) collection box at the corner of Alden Avenue and West Elm Street.
This is the second petition Alouah put together for the neighborhood’s seniors and residents living with disabilities. The first time petition was against a proposed city budget plan Mayor Elicker submitted last year that putatively included closing the Mitchell Branch library. (The library remains open.)
Two weeks ago a neighbor asked Alouah to put together the second petition on behalf of neighbors against the removal of the mail collector after signage posted on the box. The notice states that the box will be removed April 12. The next nearest mailbox is three blocks away outside the Fountain Street post office.
“We note that the proposed alternate location at the Westville Post Office is too far away for some or our elderly and disabled neighbors to walk and that the location has inadequate parking, causing driving customers to park on-street at Alden and Fountain. This often requires parking across the street and crossing at a busy intersection. We ask that you please reconsider your decision to remove our corner mailbox,” the petition reads.
