A spokesperson for the U.S. Postal Service reaffirmed that the proposal to have certain Newburgh citizens move their mailboxes from the house to the curb will not affect the historic district.

Newburgh Town Manager Cynthia Burger said the town received complaints from some of the citizens in neighborhoods surrounding the downtown district that they would be asked to move their mailboxes.

"People are concerned," she said. "It's an undue burden on them. It's an expense to them. Some of these people are elderly."

David Walton, with the U.S. Postal Service, said the change would affect rural addresses in the Newburgh area.

"We are striving to make improvements in mail delivery," he said. "A way to make it more efficient would be to have all of the boxes on the street."

Walton said that it isn't just about saving mail carriers time. Dangers such as slipping and falling on steps or steep hills and dogs all pose a threat for carriers when delivering mail.

Burger said that one of the biggest issues is on-street parking in the surrounding neighborhoods.

She said it is a necessary commodity for residents and that on-street parking would force carriers to get out of their vehicles regardless of where the mailbox is located.

Two letters have been sent out to residents informing them of the change.

However, the first letter failed to mention that customers must agree to the change.

"That was an oversight on our part," said Walton. "We do have to get permission from a customer before a box is moved."

Despite this, the post office is still urging customers to help the postal service by agreeing to move their mailboxes from their house to the street. The deadline for the proposed conversion is Saturday, Nov. 21.

"The reason we put a date on there is that we didn't want to have an open-ended letter," said Walton. "Our hope is that the community will comply and that they will see the position that we are in. We're not trying to do this to punish our customers."

Anyone who chooses to move their mailbox from their house to the street will need to have a utility locate done.

"We're not doing this to upset people," said Walton. "On the contrary, we're trying to make the mail delivery more efficient. People need to understand the plight the post office is in right now. We've got a budget shortfall. Our mail volume is down. Just like any business, we've got to do what we can to improve efficiency."