Encanto post office flunks audit

Some San Diego post offices have taken a hit in a new facility condition audit by the U.S. Postal Service, which calls out a series of deficiencies ranging from neglected landscaping and insufficient lighting to unspecified "safety concerns."

"Our objective was to determine if USPS management adhered to building maintenance, safety and security standards, and employee working condition requirements at retail facilities," says the September 6 Inspector General's report.

"We reviewed 56 facilities in the Pacific Area and assessed items related to building safety, security, maintenance, customer complaints, workplace environment, and workplace violence."

Says the report, "The USPS must improve adherence to building maintenance, safety and security standards, and employee working condition requirements at its retail facilities."

At the top of the local deficiency list is the Encanto post office, faulted in the report for inadequately maintained landscaping with failure to remove "excessive equipment"; bad "paint, plaster, wall, floor, and ceiling coverings"; insufficient lighting; and unspecified "safety concerns." In addition, the facility was found to have "improperly marked "docks, platforms, and parking areas."

According to the postal service website, the Encanto office is located at 5500 Stevens Way in the Valencia Business Park.

It was designated the Earl B. Gilliam Post Office in 2004 by a bill carried by Democratic then-congressman Bob Filner, according to a May 2012 Union-Tribune account. Gilliam was the city's first black federal judge.

In the category of bad landscaping and excessive equipment keeping, Encanto was joined by Mira Mesa and the Southeastern post office at 2777 Logan Avenue in Logan Heights.

Deficiencies of wall, ceiling, and floor coverings were also reported at the stations in Navajo and Carlsbad La Costa, as well as Mt. Laguna on Sunrise Highway.

San Diego was not alone in faults found. Of the 56 offices surveyed, per the report, 45 percent had "building safety and security issues" with the same percentage facing "potential fineable" violations of the federal Occupation Safety and Health Administration rules.

Sixty-four percent were found to have "cleanliness and maintenance issues," and 61 percent "did not maintain a customer complaint log or monitor how promptly complaints are resolved."

In their August 18 response to the audit’s findings, postal officials promised to improve conditions.