Change of address

Oliver Paipoonge council must decide whether or not to include the municipality’s name in addresses as part of Canada Post’s elimination of rural routes.

Currently, the municipality has addresses of Murillo, Kakabeka Falls, Rosslyn and Slate River. Council will decide April 27 if the municipality as a whole will go by Oliver Paipoonge.

"One (option) is that the whole township would be Oliver Paipoonge, Ontario," said Oliver Paipoonge mayor Lucy Kloosterhuis said Monday afternoon. "The second one is we have it divided into four sections."

Canada Post will decide how postal codes will work, but residents in the same area could have different postal codes once the switch is made in October.

Oliver Paipoonge held a public meeting last Tuesday afternoon about the changes. Kloosterhuis said the main concerns were from businesses that have to change letterheads and business cards.

"We had a fairly good turnout. There weren’t too many upset residents that came," she said. "Some were very happy that they were getting rid of junky old green mailboxes at the corner."

The mayor added that she has had the same address for 41 years at her Kakabeka Falls home. She and the 1,700 residents of Oliver Paipoonge don’t have a lot of choice with the changing system she said.

"Canada Post said they are going to do it and all we can do is try and make it as easy as possible for residents.”

Residents can pick up a ballot at the Oliver Paipoonge municipality office or on its website to give council some direction on whether to change the name. Ultimately it will be up to council to decide.

"Either they’ll listen to the people or they’ll go on their own we’ll find out Wednesday," she said.