Post decision delivered

By Kath Gannaway
AUSTRALIA Post will close its Healesville Walk PostShop.
That much is not negotiable according to Peter Lavis, Australia Post’s commercial manager for Victoria and Tasmania.
Australia Post advised residents early this month it would operate all its postal services from the Licensed Post Office at Healesville Newsagency from 12 February.
Healesville resident Robyn Johnson, however, says she will not take “no” for an answer and is pushing ahead with a public meeting on the issue on 1 February.
In the meantime, a meeting organised by McEwen MP Fran Bailey last week brought together Australia Post representatives, including Mr Lavis, residents and business operators opposing the closure.
Shire of Yarra Ranges Ryrie Ward councillor Jeanette McRae also attended.
Ms Bailey said the meeting had been worthwhile in raising a number of issues which were of concern to residents.
She said, however, that Australia Post was a commercial operation which had made a commercial decision which it was not going to change.
She said a number of concerns were raised including access to disabled parking, adequate lighting and security and general parking.
Ms Bailey said she was working with Cr McRae and Australia Post on addressing those and other concerns.
Ms Bailey said she shared concerns about the lack of consultation by Australia Post and that she was taking that matter up with the relevant minister.
She said anyone who was concerned about the lack of consultation could complain to the Ombudsman or to her.
“I can take their complaints forward and have already done so for those who have complained to me,” she said.
Mr Lavis told the Mail while he would attend a properly convened public meeting to put forward Australia Post’s reasons for the closure and what the new arrangement would offer, the decision would not be changed.
“I think everybody realises and accepts to have two post offices 280 paces apart is not viable,” he said.
He said patronage was falling and disputed there was strong community support for retaining The Walk PostShop.
“We sent out over 4000 notices and have had seven inquiries to our call centre and none of them complaining,” he said.
“I would have thought when we closed Saturday trading 12 months ago, if people were going to vote with their feet we would have seen strong patronage then.
“Instead patronage is down at The Walk … and it’s going up at the main street.”
Mr Lavis said Healesville would benefit from the new arrangement which would see postal services delivered from 7.30am to 6pm weekdays and Saturday and from 9am to noon on Sunday.
Ms Johnson says, however, Mr Lavis is ignoring the 1086 people who signed a petition calling for the PostShop to stay and says Australia Post has breached its own procedures on consultation.
The matter of the need, or otherwise, for a planning permit was also raised at the meeting. The Mail has been advised that the Shire of Yarra Ranges is looking into the possibility a planning permit is needed for the installation of additional post boxes.
Ms Johnson said she and other opponents of the closure had called the public meeting to give Healesville residents a chance to have a say on what happens in their town.
The meeting is at the Memorial Hall at 7.30pm on Thursday, 1 February.