The U.S. Post Office located in the Madison Municipal Building at 215 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. has been an important resource in our downtown since the building’s construction in the late 1920s. This landmarked building, with its impressive two-story Ionic colonnade, was specifically designed to serve as the Madison Post Office and Federal Courthouse. It was designated by an act of Congress in 2005 as the Robert M. La Follette Sr. Post Office to honor “Fighting Bob,” Wisconsin’s iconic progressive political leader who has been repeatedly recognized as one of our nation’s greatest senators.
We value this history as well as the utility and presence of having a centrally located post office, and we are troubled to hear of its potential permanent closing and possible relocation of this facility outside of the downtown business district. We understand that the facility will need to be temporarily relocated during the Madison Municipal Building’s renovation, and we desire that this temporary relocation be within our core business district. However, we oppose a permanent closing of the Robert M. La Follette Sr. Post Office in the Madison Municipal Building and strongly encourage any decision to include a dialogue with downtown community and business leaders as well as public engagement.