Signed, sealed, delivered

Officials on hand to cut the ribbon at the new Buda Post Office included (left to right) Santa Cruz Catholic Church Deacon Rey Garza, Buda Mayor Bobby Lane, Buda Postmaster Frank Cadena, U.S. Congressman Lloyd Doggett, USPS District Manager Manny Arguello and Post Office Operations Manager Tom Billington. PHOTO by JEN BIUNDO.

by JEN BIUNDO

City and federal officials cut the ribbon Tuesday on Buda’s new 3,500 square foot post office. U.S. Congressman Lloyd Doggett delivered the keynote speech in the grand opening and dedication ceremony.

“Thank you for bringing us this new facility that is about to get a whole lot of use,” Doggett said.

The new post office opened on Sept. 28, replacing the old Main Street facility that officials said was too small.

“The move is necessary because of significant population growth since the current post office was completed,” said Buda Postmaster Frank Cadena.

The new facility has about 30 customer parking spaces, compared to 14 at the old location.

While the old post office was located on Main Street in old town Buda, the new facility is about a mile away on Cabela’s Drive, adjacent to new big box retail along IH-35. Some residents have said they miss the convenience and pedestrian accessibility of the downtown location and have called for a mail drop-box on Main Street.

The Buda Post Office has 24 employees. In Buda they deliver mail to 7,184 families and businesses in the 78610 ZIP code area.

The city of Buda’s population has grown from about 2,400 at the 2000 census to approaching 6,000 today.

“So often when you have a community that has grown as fast as Buda, you have neighbors that don’t know each other,” Doggett said. “But it seems to me that Buda has been able to maintain that community spirit.”