Waimarino'S last post office closes

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 13, Issue 600, 22 August 1995, Page 1

Waimarino'S last post office closes

After 101 years of service, "rationalisation" is the justification for closing the Ohakune Post Office this Friday. All postal services will now operate frqm Berry's Bookshop, which has taken up the franchise for Post Shop from New Zealand Post.

In the first few years of the Waimarino, settlers had to depend on the Survey Department for mail, which was brought from Napier via Moawhanga every two weeks. It wasn't until 1894

that settlers had the luxury of a daily mail service via Pipiriki, if the mail was sourced from Wanganui. Since those early days the post office has increased Turn to Page 2 I

Waimarino's last post office closes

FROMPAGEl both services offered and transactions per day. In its hey day, up until 1987 the post office offered telecommunication services, banking facilities as well as postal services. Cynthia Dowsett was the manager of the post office up until July. Cynthia says 90 post offices through out New Zealand have been closed already. She says deciding which post offices are to close is a commercial decision which is made in Auckland, based on statistics. She hopes they took into account the massive seasonal influx into

Ohakune each year. Cynthia is sad the post office is closing but is glad that Berry's Bookshop will be offering the same services to the community. She thinks the businesses on Clyde Street near the post office will be affected. "The town is not only losing a post office, but the huge wealth of knowledge gained by staff over the years," she says. Staff have been treated very well by New Zealand Post — "they have been very flexible, although they have made two redundancies which will affect the local economy." Frank Broadbent and Carol Dockley at Berry ' s Bookshop have spent the past three weeks the shop to make room for the post shop services. "Visually a big change will be having the private boxes where the front window

is," says Frank. Other changes include new lines for the computer terminals and a closed circuit security system. All the staff have attended a week-long course in Auckland to learn how to operate the Post Shop and Robin Scarrow has become a permanent staff member. "We are definitely expecting some teething problems and I have got a lot more grey hairs since we took on the franchise," jokes Frank. A "noggin and a natter" is planned for Friday 25 August which everyone is invited to. The future of the building is uncertain. There is speculation that the police station may be moved into the post office. The Bulletin acknowledges reference to Ohakune, Opening to a New World by Merrilyn George.