THETFORD CENTER — To the dismay of some residents, the Thetford Center Post Office suspended service earlier this month due to “safety concerns” of the building, according to a letter the United States Postal Service sent to customers.

The fewer than 50 patrons who received P.O. box service at the Thetford Center Post Office, located in the now shuttered Village Store on Route 113, now have a box at the the Thetford Hill Post Office, about a mile up the road. The single employee at the Thetford Center location moved to the Thetford Hill office, Postmaster Mandy Bragg said on Friday.

There’s also a post office in East Thetford, about four miles from the now closed office and in North Thetford, five miles away.

It’s not clear what the safety concerns are or whether the change is temporary or permanent. But the new arrangement, which began May 2, has left some residents unhappy.

On Friday morning, resident Paul Rump was at the Thetford Hill Post Office, an office he doesn’t usually frequent, picking up his daily mail.

“It’s a pain in the butt,” said Rump, who’s lived in Thetford for more than 50 years. “I have to come all the way up here.”

The additional mile is uphill and Rump said he’s concerned about the road conditions in the winter.

Rump also is dismayed about losing another gathering space. “We already lost the village store,” he said. “This is just another blow to the community.”

The closure of the post office came as a surprise to the owner of the Thetford Village Store, John Sayarath, who wrote in a May 3 social media post that he had “not received any official communication from the Postmaster about this decision.”

He described the post office as “an essential anchor for Thetford Center,” adding that he’s “deeply sorry to see it go.”

Sayarath, who teaches at St. Johnsbury Academy, purchased the store in 2024, according to property records. The store is a part of the Thetford Center Historic District and was built in the 1830s before being moved to its current spot in 1895, according to the National Register of properties and districts. It has been closed since 2022.

“When I purchased the store, I committed to preserving this historic building and doing everything I could to keep it running,” Sayarath wrote.

So far he’s had repairs performed on the roof, furnace and electrical system, Sayarath wrote.

“Once the school year ends, I plan to dedicate myself full-time to restoring the building and hope to reopen the store as soon as possible,” he wrote.

It’s possible the post office also will reopen at some point. The postal service “has not made a final decision to permanently discontinue” the Thetford Center office, the letter to customers said.

“Should any such decision be made in the future, the Postal Service will solicit feedback from customers on any potential discontinuance actions,” the letter said.

The lobby and P.O. boxes at the Thetford Hill Post Office, located at 2734 Route 113, are accessible from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 8 to 11:30 a.m. on Saturdays.

Emma Roth-Wells can be reached by erothwe lls@ vnews.com or 603-727-3242.