'Complicated' new post office box mandate has Burlington mayor shaking his head

Maddie Ryan · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 25, 2025 4:30 AM EDT | Last Updated: 2 minutes ago

A travel to the station bureau isn't arsenic casual arsenic it utilized to beryllium for galore residents connected Newfoundland's Baie Verte Peninsula, says 1 mayor.

Burlington Mayor Rudy Norman is frustrated astatine a caller Canada Post argumentation that requires customers usage a station bureau container for deliveries.

Although immoderate of the town's 300 residents already had a station bureau box, helium says determination was immoderate flexibility that allowed residents to have packages delivered to a container oregon a house. He says the new mandate changed existing container numbers, causing adjacent much disorder wrong the community.

"Now, alternatively of Box 12, truly you're Box 85, Site 3, Module 6. I mean, that sounds a small spot complicated," Norman told CBC Radio's Newfoundland Morning.

"All of a sudden, the code that you've utilized each your life, it's got to change. It's not bully capable anymore."

If an code is incorrect oregon incomplete, helium says the message is returned to the sender.

In a societal media post, Norman announced helium plans connected presenting a solution to Canada Post to "reverse these restrictive practices truthful we tin each person our message safely and reliably — whether that's by P.O. Box, thoroughfare address, oregon wide delivery."

The solution volition beryllium voted connected astatine Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador's adjacent yearly wide meeting, helium wrote.

The caller mailing strategy was phased successful implicit the past year, but Norman says radical inactive aren't utilized to it and he's heard of galore mishaps from residents since Canada Post introduced the change.

"For instance, a azygous parent ordered day presents [for] her girl and due to the fact that their P.O. Box wasn't connected it, it was sent back," said Norman. 

"An aged man missed a specializer appointment," helium added. 

Changing an code tin beryllium stressful and hard for Burlington's elder population, says Norman.

From security companies, compartment telephone providers, credit cards to utilities — determination are galore antithetic entities residents person to inform in bid to wage their bills with the close address, says Norman.

Limited options 

Norman is frustrated the Crown corp isn't making message transportation easier for his agrarian community.

"Canada Post is the lone shipper that we person present successful a batch of situations," helium said.

In a connection to CBC News, Canada Post spokesperson Lisa Liu wrote Burlington customers' superior mode of message transportation is done their P.O. Box, "which is assigned and managed solely by Canada Post, arsenic per our mailing code database."

"The resident's civic code is determined by their section municipality. As such, customers should guarantee they usage the close code – which successful this lawsuit includes the P.O. Box and civic code — erstwhile shipping an point done Canada Post, ordering an point online oregon receiving mail," Liu added.

Liu besides says a missive was sent to customers successful February to notify them that items volition proceed to beryllium returned to sender if an incorrect code is used.

A due mailing code follows this format:

• The addressee's name,
• Civic address,
• Postal Box number,
• and municipality name, state oregon territory, and postal code.

Download our free CBC News app to motion up for propulsion alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador.  Click here to sojourn our landing page.