Rep. Panetta Stands with Local Community Leaders to Call on the United States Postal Service to Restore Mail Service to Brookdale

To watch his remarks, click HERE.

For additional photos and b-roll, click HERE.

Brookdale, CA – United States Representative Jimmy Panetta (CA-19) brought together local elected leaders and community members at the Brookdale Lodge to voice their unified opposition to the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) proposed permanent closure of the Brookdale Post Office. Rep. Panetta was joined at the press conference by Santa Cruz County Supervisor Monica Martinez, Jason Patel of the Brookdale Lodge, and other concerned Brookdale residents. With more than 30 community members present, the group called on USPS to restore mail service as soon as they can to Brookdale.

After nearly two years of delays, missed deadlines, and inconsistent statements, USPS recently launched a discontinuance feasibility study for the Brookdale Post Office without proposing an alternative location in the community or expanded local service. The proposed closure would leave the people of Brookdale without local postal services in a community that already lacks USPS home delivery.

“For nearly two years, the people of Brookdale have waited in good faith while USPS sat on its hands, missed deadlines, and failed to provide a reliable timeline for restoring service,” said Rep. Panetta. “Now, instead of finding a new location or restoring local service, USPS is studying whether to permanently close the Brookdale Post Office. We are standing shoulder to shoulder to call for USPS to halt the study and restore postal services for the Brookdale community.”

“It is unfair for USPS to further burden Brookdale residents, who have already had to assume additional costs in the aftermath of the CZU Lightning Fire Complex, by asking them to travel out of town to access their mail during work hours. If they won’t reestablish a post office, USPS should offer home delivery in Brookdale, like it does in neighboring towns,” said Santa Cruz County Supervisor Monica Martinez.

“After nearly two years without local postal service, Brookdale residents deserve a solution, not a permanent closure. Brookdale residents don’t get home mail delivery, making the post office their only way to receive their prescriptions, ballots, and bills. Since the fire, they have had to drive to Boulder Creek or Ben Lomond to pick up their mail. I stand with Congressman Panetta and Brookdale residents in calling on USPS to restore postal service in Brookdale,” said Assemblymember Gail Pellerin.

“We, the residents of Brookdale, respectfully request the restoration of a permanent U.S. Post Office in the community of Brookdale, Zip Code 95007,” said Brookdale Resident Sally Lussier.

USPS plays a fundamental role in making sure Americans stay informed and participate in our democracy, receive essential government services, pay their bills, and maintain access to lifesaving medication. However, postal services in Brookdale have been suspended since a fire damaged the community’s post office in December 2024. Since then, Brookdale residents have had to travel to Boulder Creek to receive essential mail and conduct the everyday business of their lives. That burden falls especially hard on seniors, people with disabilities, working families, and residents without reliable transportation.

With USPS closing the study’s comment period on October 11, Rep. Panetta and local leaders urged residents to submit their questionnaires and feedback before the deadline. Rep. Panetta also collected comment cards from Brookdale residents expressing their opposition to the proposed permanent closure, which he will submit directly to USPS this week. Those who could not attend the event in person can complete the form linked here by October 9 to have their concerns submitted by Rep. Panetta’s office.

USPS was invited to attend the event but declined to participate, citing its September 11 virtual meeting on the discontinuance feasibility study.

Rep. Panetta has repeatedly pressed USPS leadership to restore postal services in Brookdale. Last week, Rep. Panetta wrote to Postmaster General David Steiner demanding that USPS immediately halt the discontinuance feasibility study for the Brookdale Post Office, identify a new location in Brookdale, and expand appropriate postal services to serve the community. In a February 2026 letter to the Postmaster General, he called on USPS to repair and reopen the facility with a clear project timeline and provide temporary postal service within the community in the interim. After USPS missed its promised May 1 reopening date, Rep. Panetta sent a May 2026 letter requesting that the USPS Inspector General review the agency’s management, communication, and decision-making, the adequacy of interim services, and the feasibility of restoring service through a temporary or alternative facility. 

Rep. Panetta will continue to oppose the USPS proposal to permanently close the Brookdale Post Office and demand a permanent postal facility that serves the Brookdale community. 

For additional photos and b-roll, click HERE.

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