Post office boxes may be a thing of the past for a small island community in Manatee County.

Jack Jackson and Peggy Myers have had a contract with the United States Postal Service to provide mail to Holmes Beach customers for 20 years.

They run a mail service business at 5343 Gulf Drive. They say while they’d like to retire, they’re now holding off.

“Peggy is real fond of the customers and the job,” Jackson said. “She doesn’t want to put a hardship on them about the box situation.”

Jackson said whenever they leave, whoever gets the new contract won’t get to keep the 250 post office boxes at their location.

He said they’ll still be able to provide mail service, just no boxes. The postal service plans to move all of the boxes to their two other government operated post office facilities on the island.

One is at the north end in Anna Maria. The other is in Bradenton Beach. Customers say they’re not happy about this.

“I’d have to give up my post office box,” said Holmes Beach resident Claudia Carlson. “It wouldn’t be practical.”

The postal service said one of the reasons for the change is because of the close proximity of the two post offices.

They’re only 6 miles away from each other and just around 3 miles from the Holmes Beach location in both directions.

“It is not an option,” Carlson said. “You just can’t imagine during season going all the way to the north end of the island or all the way to the south end.”

Customers said it’s not the distance that bothers them, it’s the amount of time it takes to get there.

“It’s an hour to pick up your mail and drive back,” said Hank Schenk, who lives on Holmes Beach a few months out of the year.

Traffic is heavily congested on the island and getting around is not easy.

Myers and Jackson said without the boxes, they fear the business would struggle.

“It’s such a small amount of money they can make on the new system,” Jackson said. “If they don’t have boxes, it’s not feasible. It’s not going to pay expenses to operate it.”

Jackson also worries about the damage it will do to nearby businesses.

“Business are the ones that are really going to hurt because of all the invoices and correspondence business cards,” Jackson said. “Everything that refers to this address, they’re going to lose and have to all start over.”

Myers and Jackson are asking for the community’s help. They want everyone to contact their local elected officials to keep the boxes there. No word when any changes will take place.

The Holmes Beach Post Office has been a contract office for nearly 40 years now.

Concerned citizens can contact the Postal Regulatory Commission.