The U.S. Postal Service in Madison announced Monday it will be moving into the vacant building previously occupied by McDonald's at 441 N. Lake St.
According to Terri Bouffiou, spokesperson for Madison's postal service, the post office will start renovations on the building once a contractor is chosen. She said by next fall, students can expect to see a fully functional post office.
""Once we have a contractor, within 90 days, we should have a post office,"" Bouffiou said. ""Which means that in time for the fall semester we will have a new post office for the students on the UW campus.""
Currently, the post office is leasing temporary space from the University Bookstore to serve the campus community. Bouffiou said although the bookstore has provided a great interim location, a large, permanent residence is ideal.
""As an interim solution, it was marvelous,"" Bouffiou said of the bookstore locale, adding that ""we've wanted something that would really serve the community well and we think this McDonald's location is plenty large.""
Kim Fredrickson, controller of University Bookstore, said the post office at the store has been a good facilitator to the business. She said the bookstore actually approached the post office about a lease when University Square shut down.
""They've been great tenants, we love having them and we love the foot traffic,"" Fredrickson said, adding that she is pleased the new location remains close.
Bouffiou and Fredrickson agreed that the bookstore locale was good for the time being, but lacked visibility to students. Bouffiou said she believes the post office needed to relocate because of a large number of complaints and calls from people asking about a new campus post office.
""It's a good site on State Street, it was available, it's plenty large and it has good access,"" Bouffiou said.
Ald. Austin King, District 8, said he was excited to hear the post office would be filling the vacancy left behind by McDonald's. He also said it was a long time coming because of University Square closing.
UW-Madison sophomore Sarah Carter said that while McDonald's was one of her favorite restaurants near campus, the fact that a post office is moving into the building instead of another food establishment is a good thing.
""I'm happy that the post office is moving in [because] I don't even know where it is right now,"" Carter said. ""With University Square closing I had no idea where to find a post office.""
