SENATOR COLLINS ANNOUNCES OFFICIAL APPROVAL OF NEW MAIL PROCESSING & DISTRIBUTION CENTER IN SCARBOROUGH-SOUTH PORTLAND

Washington, DC - Senator Susan Collins today announced that the U.S. Postal Service has approved $82 million in funding for the construction of a new mail processing and distribution center on the border of Scarborough and South Portland. The new facility is expected to be 429,000 square feet. Construction is expected to begin this summer and to be completed by April 2007. The project also includes the renovation of the processing and distribution center on Forest Avenue in Portland.

"The new mail processing and distribution center in Scarborough-South Portland will not only help to improve postal operations in Maine, but also will create a number of construction jobs and benefit the economy," said Senator Collins.

The U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors voted this morning to approve funding for the new facility, which will be called the Southern Maine Processing and Distribution Center.

Senator Collins is the Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, which has jurisdiction over the U.S. Postal Service.