Saint Etienne. The municipal council stands up against the closure of two post offices

THE municipal council was more than stormy , Monday March 25, but the last point finally brought everyone in agreement. Elected officials from the majority and the opposition joined together to say no to the plan to close two post offices in Saint-Étienne, including one in the city center.

After Solaure and Monthieu in 2016, town hall and prefecture in 2017, Fourneyron in 2019 and, recently, La Métare, La Poste announced to its employees last week, his intention to close the post offices of La Richelandière and rue du Président-Wilson.

“I don’t understand the logic of these closures”

During the pre-council press conference, the mayor, Gaël Perdriau, also indicated that he had received a letter from the group’s regional management on March 11. “I immediately responded to oppose these closures, the logic of which I do not understand,” he disapproved.

At the end of the council, the elected officials therefore wished to collectively mark their disagreement, with a wish voted unanimously by all the groups. “The planned closures would be a new hard blow to the public postal service in Saint-Étienne, which has suffered numerous setbacks over the past ten years,” they write, deploring that the City is being put “once again in front of the accomplished fact.”

“A mercantile and economic approach to public service”

Concerning the La Richelandière Post Office, located at 40 rue de Terrenoire, the municipal councilors refute the argument of the lack of passages. “The drop in attendance cited seems surprising considering the dynamism of the Montplaisir district with its numerous shops and services, the proximity of the HPL and the ZAC Loti. »

They do not understand the desire to close the Wilson postal agency, opposite the arcades of the town hall, which required 1.5 million euros of investment just six years ago. “This office was to compensate for the closure of the prefecture and town hall post offices, in return for which a lasting postal presence in the town center had to be guaranteed,” they recall. “The sad reality lies in the fact that the La Poste group has adopted a mercantile and economic approach to public service,” lament the elected officials.

Employees on strike Tuesday April 2

“I hope that by dint of wishes, because it is not the first, we will end up being heard,” said Pierrick Courbon, of the group Saint-Étienne Demain.

Contacted last week, the La Poste group did not officially confirm these two closures but indicates that consultation is underway. The employees, for their part, will be on strike Tuesday April 2 with a rally planned for 10 a.m. outside Wilson’s office.