By Shannon Lukens.

 

The newest problem at the Steamboat Springs Post Office is the parking lot. It is full of ruts and ice. People have been using the outside drop off mailbox but then sliding into it and damaging their cars when they hit it. There’s someone’s bumper in the snow there right now.

Terry Paulsen is with Russell’s Auto Salon, which provides full-service auto body shop and collision repairs. He says they have four or five repair jobs already scheduled because of it.

 

“One quarter panel got ripped, and the other guy lost their bumper, and it’s been a mess.”

 

Mae Greene drove through the Steamboat Springs Post Office Tuesday night, to drop off a letter and she slid into the outside mailbox.

“The ruts were so bad that it pulled me into them. So I wasn’t actually driving, I was just pulling out, and it pulled my car so hard that it hit the box and ripped off the front of it. It punctured the car. In the back corner panel, there’s a big hole.”

 

Greene brought her $2,500 repair estimate in to Fernando, the postmaster in Steamboat Springs. He told her he would submit it to be paid.

Greene was actually borrowing the car from friends. Their son turns 16 next week and he is getting the car so he is a little sad that it comes with a hole in it, until March when it can get fixed.

We talked to Fernando Wednesday afternoon. He said he will be sending any repair estimates to the snow removal contractor. He says he has been asking them to scrape the parking lot for a couple of weeks now. But he hasn’t heard back from them.

 

Fernando also saw the damaged dropoff mailbox Wednesday morning and he has put a cone up in front of it so people don’t get too close and slide into it. When we were there, people were still pulling up, but getting out of their vehicles to drop off their mail in the outside box.

 

As for the repair to Greene’s vehicle, the repair shop can’t get to it until March.

 

We have an email into the United States Postal Service corporate office in Denver but have not yet heard back.

 

And as a reminder, it’s a right turn only out of the Steamboat Springs Post Office.

 

More coverage of the Steamboat Springs Post Office

• Steamboat Springs Post Office Update; Jan. 11, 2023
• Where’s the mail in Steamboat Springs? Jan. 10, 2023
• Too much Trash at Steamboat Springs Post Office; Sept. 7, 2022