FREEBORN — What will happen to the post office in this community?

That’s the question that still lingered Thursday night after officials with the U.S. Postal Service discussed potential changes taking place for the debt-burdened agency.

“The fact is we lose money every day we are open here in Freeborn,” said Mike Stevens, manager of post office operations out of Mankato, to a crowd of about 50 people.

Freeborn, along with Conger, Hayward and Twin Lakes in Freeborn County, were identified in July as four of the 3,650 offices, branches and stations across the country that could face potential closure.

Stevens said the Freeborn location is facing closure because of low mail volume. There is less than two hours of work there per day for an employee.

Because of this, the Postal Service is beginning to study the Freeborn post office and is considering switching to an alternative method of service. This may involve switching from the post office boxes the community had been used to.

Kim Melson-Gohr, postmaster in Windom, said in Freeborn alone, the annual expenses are about $84,000 with only about $27,000 coming in for revenues each year.

Melson-Gohr said closing the location and switching to rural mail carrier service could save about $62,000 a year. She said there is not enough work to justify a full-time position in Freeborn.

She presented the following options:

• Freeborn residents can continue to receive their mail at other locations with post office boxes, at places like Albert Lea, Wells, Hartland or Alden.

• Residents could put up rural mailboxes on the street near their homes. They would receive their mail through a rural mail carrier, through which they could also buy stamps and send packages.

Melson-Gohr said rural delivery can be more convenient for the elderly or working people. She said it would save on post office box fees and could save time for people.

The disadvantages would be that people may have to change their mailing address from a post office box to a street address and the community would lose its postmaster. There is also the risk of the mailboxes being hit by a snowplow.

• An existing business in the community could partner up with the Postal Service to bring about a Village Post Office, in which postal services are offered in local stores, libraries or government offices. People could keep their post office boxes for this alternative.

Residents questioned how long the business would have to be open each day and if someone would have to monitor it at all times.

Melson-Gohr said the Postal Service will “go to great lengths” to investigate which will be the most appropriate option for Freeborn residents.

Residents have 60 days beginning Wednesday to submit their comments and proposals, which will be reviewed by both lower level and senior level postal management.

A public notice of the final decision will be posted for 30 days, and then customers have 30 additional days to appeal the decision to the Postal Rate Commission. The commission has 120 days to issue a decision.

If no appeal is submitted, discontinuance would not begin sooner than 60 days after the public posting of the final decision.

“Your input is critical to the final decision-making process,” Melson-Gohr said.

Stevens said there are 85 offices in Minnesota being considered for closure.

“We’re not picking on any one particular community,” he said.

The action comes as the Postal Service faces financial challenges, mainly debt from labor and infrastructure costs, along with declining revenue. Also, the agency receives no tax dollars, yet it is unable to make serious changes without going through Congress.

Melson-Gohr said mail volume has declined by 20 percent since 2006 and is expected to continue to decline because of electronic mail and other online services.

That, coupled with increased fuel costs and other cost pressures, are forcing the Postal Service to have to adjust.

She said the organization has already limited administrative areas, frozen executive salaries and are selling buildings.

He said while the $62,000 of potential savings in Freeborn may not seem like a lot, the organization has to look at the alternatives.

One resident, Gene Millang, questioned several of the proposals and asked whether Freeborn residents would lose their zip code.

“We’d hate to lose our identity of being Freeborn,” Millang said.

Stevens said he does not think any changes would affect the zip code.

“You’re still going to be Freeborn, no matter what happens to the Postal Service,” Stevens said. “Postal service isn’t your identity. It’s you folks right here that are the identity of Freeborn.”

After the meeting, Millang questioned whether the Postal Service could switch to operating only Tuesdays through Fridays; however, he noted the federal requirement to be open six days.

Others started talking about other potential options, including having the mail operations through the city and were asked to submit proposals during the 60-day period.

Residents in attendance were also asked to contact their congressman about potential changes in Postal Service requirements.