The Ashcroft Canada Post (CP) outlet has had a major interior makeover; a move that postmaster Belinda Murray applauds.
“I’m very happy with it,” she says. “We were overdue for an image upgrade.”
Murray, who has worked at the Ashcroft branch for 23 years, notes that the building was opened in 1980, but there have been no major changes to the interior since then. “It’s been repainted, and they re-did the floors once, but that’s all. Now it’s nice and bright, with nice clean lines.”
“Every year we do a review of retail offices in B.C. based on need, and how old they are,” says Rob Klarich, the CP superintendent (retail) of local area operations for Thompson/Nicola/Fraser Canyon. “Then a decision is made to see if it meets the requirements for an image upgrade.” He notes that the “look” of the Ashcroft outlet, prior to the renovation, dated back to the 1970s.
“Most of the changes were cosmetic,” he says, adding that a large parcel component will be going up in the foyer. This will enable customers to gain access to parcels that do not need to be signed for, even if the post office is not open.
“The Ashcroft outlet still looked clean, and was well kept up,” says Karen Plessis, the CP local area manager for Thompson/Nicola/Fraser Canyon. “The staff took great pride in its appearance. However, the lighting has been improved, and the counters have been lowered for wheelchair users and those with parcels. The old counter just didn’t work for our era.”
It’s the third and final re-imaging of area post offices for the year, following work in Logan Lake and Clinton. Murray says that public reaction to the changes has been very positive for the most part. She adds that the bulletin boards will be returning to the foyer when work is complete.
The grand reopening on November 15 featured the unveiling of a new celebratory hand cancel stamp, which features the historic Ashcroft fire hall. “We worked with staff and had different designs,” says Klarich. “It was felt that the fire hall was representative of Ashcroft, and important enough to be used.”
The special cancel stamp created to commemorate the post office's makeover. Canada Post photo.
“I think it’s great to see Canada Post invest in the community and upgrade,” says Ashcroft mayor Jack Jeyes. “It will better serve the community in the future, and it’s great to see Canada Post having faith in the community. There were times when people were worried about Canada Post, but it’s nice to see that they have invested, and it looks like they’re here to stay for quite a while.”