Retail and P.O. box services back next week after fire at Loring post office

Officials say the cause of the fire was not suspicious.

January 22, 2019 at 4:41PM
Fire damaged a postal station in downtown Minneapolis in April 2018.
Fire damaged a postal station in downtown Minneapolis in April 2018. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

More than nine months after a significant fire, retail and counter services will resume next week at a post office station on the edge of downtown Minneapolis.

Firefighters had to break through the public entrance to get to the fire at the Loring Station post office, 18 N. 12th St., late at night on April 21.

The blaze began in a back room of the 40,000-square-foot building and charred some of the mail in the sorting area. The initial damage estimate was $700,000. The cause has not been released, but the Fire Department has said nothing indicates that it was suspicious.

The Loring Station resumed processing mail delivery in late November for ZIP codes 55403 and 55405 from its location near the westbound entrance to Interstate 394.

Retail and post office box services start up again on Jan. 28, the U.S. Postal Service has announced.

Counter service hours will be Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The post office box lobby will be open 24 hours.

The Postal Service is using the reopening as an opportunity to host a customer appreciation event on Feb. 4 at the Loring Station from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. A hiring table will also be set up for those interested in a Postal Service career.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482

Correction: Previous versions of this article misstated the date for when retail services resume at the Loring Station post office in Minneapolis. That date is Jan. 28.

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Paul Walsh

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Paul Walsh is a general assignment reporter at the Star Tribune. He wants your news tips, especially in and near Minnesota.

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