“One of the most important things we check for

“One of the most important things we check for is a safe entrance,” said Bob Moore, resident engineer for the Virginia Department of Transportation. “We are concerned with the sight-distance on the road.” Drainage was another concern he said he typically considers. However, VDOT ha6 not received a request from the U. S. Postal Service to look at the property, he said, and until a site plan has been submitted, VDOT will not look at it.

Mrs. Rath discussed the need for a new post office and said that the present location provides less than 650 square feet and is “very crowded.” “Since the late 1980s, the Postal Service agreed to do everything they could to keep the post office in the village,” she added.

After the legal department approves the contract, Thompson said, the U. S. Postal Service’s standard architectural plans for a 3,500 square foot building would be turned over to an architect under government contract. Then the plan will be adapted to the site and specific needs. He added that the architect would look at the surrounding buildings and try to imitate the their exterior.

“Some have flat roofs, some hip roofs, but the architects generally look at what is there now and will try to fit it in,” he said. The minor details can be discussed, he added. “Hopefully, you will end up with a nice post office in the community.”

“A petition was signed by 450 residents who were very concerned that they wanted the post office to stay in Amis8ville. It is the centerpiece of the village,” Robert Lindquist said. He was active in the community effort last year that opposed the U. S. Postal Service’s plan to close the Amissville post office and open one at Clevenger’s comer.

The slow progress on this project may be due to a change in the U. S. Postal Service’s policy. “The Postal Service hasn’t built a post office ever in the county,” McCarthy said. All of the county’s post offices are rented or leased.