Wicker Park USPS Carrier Annex

If you are expecting a package, it’s better to stay home all day rather than plan on picking it up at this location. The hours are horrible, 11:00 — 4:00, so that means the average person has to take time out of their work day. Employees are constantly late and don’t open until 11:15 or close early.
Terrible customer service, the employees are extremely unpleasant and have misplaced multiple packages over the years. I truly believe they have no idea what is going on.
Avoid at all cost.

This place is horrible. I walked in even wondering if it was a USPS center as it does not even look like one. There is only one person working and only one window. I truly felt sorry for the person working because it was clear that they needed help and they were working hard. I was about the 6^th person in line and waited about an hour to get my package. Also the pink slip they leave at your door states that they are open to 5 and they are only open until 4.

This post office delivers my mail and packages to the wrong address more often than they deliver to the correct address. I have had at least 3 packages that just disappeared in a period of six months. They always say they were delivered but seeing as I work from home facing out of the window near the mailbox, I know for a fact they aren’t delivering them. Most of the employees who deliver mail to my address are constantly talking on their phone and not paying attention to where they are putting people’s mail. It’s so easy to match an address on a piece of paper to an a address on a mailbox… this isn’t rocket science. People should not have to worry that they won’t receive their mail or that something confidential will be delivered to the wrong house. UNACCEPTABLE!

First of all the # listed on this and when you search online is wrong: it’s (312) 243‑5573. Second of all, no one will answer the phone during working hours anyway, so a lot of good that does to have the real number. Third of all, the packages that come out of this annex have been continually marked «delivered» to my home address when they indeed aren’t, and then they get sent here to be held in perpetuity (mostly because I don’t have the time to get there, and then they get sent back to sender). I think USPS needs a swift kick to the groin – can you please just start copying the business plan of FedEx and UPS already? And for the love of god if you’re not going to deliver to my house then deliver to a UPS store — they’re ACTUALLY open outside of working hours (not only till 4 pm). I wish this place would just cease to exist, and the usps would only carry letter grade mail. Absolutely worthless with this portion of their job.

I am getting beyond frustrated with the post office. They cannot do their jobs, and I highly suspect them of steeling packages. Oh, it’s christmas time? Welp, guess we «lost» your gift from your friend in England!
I’ve called several times now, no answer, tried to do a redelivery both via online and through customer service and STILL NOTHING. I’ve even filed a complaint and NOTHING. This is a package that needs to be signed for and I’m leaving in a few days to visit family for over a week.
and this is not the first time i’ve had terrible problems with this post office. They just LOVE to deliver packages exactly when you tell them not to, if they bother to at all.
On top of it, I can’t possibly make it out to their office during the times that Unilocal says they’re open. I work out in the suburbs. I will have to take a day off from work to be able to pick up my package here before it gets shipped back to England, if it ever does.
EDIT: I’ve contacted customer service at USPS, and I have gotten confirmation that pickup hours at this location is only between 11 and 4 Monday through Friday. So the notice is incorrect.

I just hoofed it 30 minutes to pickup my 3D printer that I needed for a very important project, and USPS decided to close an hour early. The woman directly inside the glass door refused to open up for me and proceeded to wave her hands angrily at me.
USPS,
I’ll be sure to wave angrily at you as FedEx, UPS, GMAIL finally put you in your grave.

Terrible hours. Long line. Not in a convenient location. I also tried calling multiple times. No one ever answered.

*****Update after being on hold from 10:19AM until 4:15PM A LIVE HUMAN BEING ANSWERED****
There was no apology, no acknowledgment of my commitment to remaining on hold all day. Sadly I am provisionally calling this a success as a) someone finally picked up; and b) they promised to have the package delivered tomorrow.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
I’ve been on hold for over 5 hours. Called this morning and was told «there are 3 customers ahead of you, let me put you on hold» — 45 minutes later, the lady came back and said «can you give me that number again, mam»? I responded that I had not had an opportunity to give her a number yet — she put me on hold again. I went about my business. I work in an office so I answered my calls on other lines, I left for a lunch meeting, went about may day, etc. Came back — still on hold. Conferenced in the 800 number so I could inform them of my issue and ask them my question — while also making clear that this was a 3-​way conference line and that crap they hear in the background is me being on hold for 4 hours (at that point). Obviously nobody is coming back — I get that, but it’s no sweat off my back to keep the line open just out of principal. I filed a complaint online after 1 hour, filed a complaint with the rep at the 800 number after 4 hours, and we’ll ride this out and file another complaint marking the total time on hold before leaving my office for the day. I have NEVER had a good experience with this post office. I have had MANY undelivered items, unanswered calls, and missing packages. I’ve had many people send items 2-​day priority that arrive over 7 days later (I am so glad they paid for that service, worked out well for everyone). I have mailed things that arrive at the recipient SLIT OPEN from the bottom. This is a disgrace and the fact that it has gone on for YEARS without any change is ABSURD. We deserve better than this. I know this is 2015 — but MAIL IS STILL IMPORTANT — which is why we have a governmental entity to handle this. Kevin Costner roaming around on a horse delivering mail would be far faster and more reliable than this.

All the negative reviews are correct. No one here does their job and they treat customers like garbage, as if your mail isn’t important and neither is your time. I’ve been frustrated nearly to the point of tears on several occasions trying to retrieve mail that was marked delivered and wasn’t or said to be at the post office and wasn’t. I will be so happy for the day this isn’t my post office.

Secretly found USPS documents, VIA ANONYMOUS:
1. Hire low-​paid delivery workers, and let them know that it doesn’t really matter if you deliver the package/​envelope/​notice to the right house.
1a. Since USPS’ technology is still somewhere in the 1940’s (unlike more efficient companies like UPS and Fed Ex) we have no way of actually tracking where all of those Wicker Park hipsters’ mail actually is. We can then claim ignorance.
2. If the mail carrier accidentally delivers the notice/​package to the right address, set the package in PLAIN VIEW of the entire public, so the package can be marked «free for the taking»
2a. Our website already says «package delivered,» so we are safe then.
2b. Take the rest of the day off on the clock, you’ve done your job, Soldier.
3. Decide what the most INCONVENIENT hours are for operation, so that if a notice actually gets delivered, we can make it as difficult as possible for the general public to pick up their package.
3a. This will make it easier for the general public to grow frustrated with us, and they might even give up entirely on the package. We will have an epic party at the end of the month, with several hundred «surprise packages» given out as BINGO prizes. BYOB.
4. Hire extremely disgruntled management, that have disdain for humanity in general, and make up illegal rules such as «certified mail required, with matching address on your photo i.d. card»
4b. Then the extremely disgruntled management with a disdain for humanity may then do what they were trained to do while incarcerated 15 years ago. Bone Bone Bone Bone…
5. When the extremely disgruntled management with disdain for humanity actually has to interact with the general public, let them be as rude as they wish. It’s not like our extremely efficient government regulated system of mail delivery ACTUALLY has a checks and balances system. Homophobia is so gay.
6. Don’t appear to be motivated, it might give the general public the wrong idea.
***VERY IMPORTANT***
Don’t forget our insurance policy:
Most of our customers… you can disregard 90% of their complaints.
What they don’t know (that we do) is, that we will never be held responsible for lost packages, unlike UPS, and Fed Ex (who actually think these people matter).
Basically, if we are delivering the package… these people must not care about a package actually being delivered. They didn’t decide to spend that extra
$ 5 – 7 for UPS, so they didn’t give a s_​_​t anyway. IDIOTS.
I repeat, WE ARE NOT LIABLE FOR LOST OR STOLEN PACKAGES
This will leave the responsibility on either the individual, or the company/​person that mailed the package in the first place
Sound too good to be true? I think not!
Welcome to USPS! This letter is your sign-​on bonus.

Thank you, Unilocalers and Leah C for all the tips! As Leah stated, I, too, was very nervous. I prepared for the worst: my packages would be missing, someone might be rude, I would get lost etc. I was imagining something out of Broad City. I will admit, I was a little excited to meet Garol.
But you all prepared me so well. I had all my documents in-​hand before my turn and was helped by an efficient employee. I was out of there in a few minutes packages in hand!

How can this place be so ineffective?
says attempt was made to deliver my package last Sunday, but I see no notice was left on my door. I go to the post office with tracking number and they say to call the Annex for undelivered packages. I call and they can’t find the package even with a tracking number. They say they’ll call back but don’t. Later they put me on hold for 17 minutes then say the system is down and to call back hours later. They were polite, but there’s a Keystone Cops kind of feel, like there’s no good system in place and it’s everyone’s first day on the job.

Fuck. This. Place.
I have been chasing a package for over a month. They want my signature. They lose the slip with my signature. They lose my package. They find my package, only to lose the NEW signed slip. Now I find out the REAL problem was that its registered and could NEVER be left. So I’m told I have to bring a piece of mail with my address, since I don’t have an updated ID. Walk over and they need a CERTIFIED letter. I convince them to FINALLY hand over this belated xmas gift.
On top of that, over the course of this endeavor, I’ve been put on hold for over 45 minutes on several occasions. Some days Id call them and no one ever picks up. I just pray I’ll never have to deal with this incompetent, frustrating, dead-​eyed group of individuals.

The absolute worst place on the planet. I feel God is punishing me when I have to come here. The service is the slowest, nastiest, meanest, most unorganized, rudest, most insulting, most unethical, most unproffesional service I have ever seen in my entire life.

Negative stars.
Rude and lazy workers. They should all be fired. What a total embarrassment to the system.

This place is embarrassing. I’ve lived all over the country and every single place I’ve lived in has been served by a real post office. Here in my neighborhood in Chicago we’re «served» by this hellhole. We can only pick up packages in this random industrial area. And the hours are totally different from the ones listed on the package slip. They are 11 – 4 pm. When many normal people are working. They claim this is because of «construction.»
If you can get time off work, it’s a great place to meet your neighbors or bond with them because they are crying because they can’t get things like their bridesmaids dresses or important documents. You may be here awhile.
I think they had better mail service on the frontier in the 1800s.

I had anxiety thinking about going to this place. The reviews paint an experience likened to the tortures of the damned. Yet, when all was said and done, I walked out of said hell allayed. Maybe my timing was fortuitous.
Anyways, my adventure was simple. Being one that hates to look lost or untaught, here’s what you should know:
1) I arrived. I had to circle around the block once since the ill-​placed USPS sign for the entrance is overpowered by both a green awning and the sign for H.O.M.E. But be assured, this purgatory outpost is in fact where you’d think it should logically be.
2) I entered. Immediately to the left in the lobby, I found the service window. Approaching carefully towards the beast’s den, I anticipated to find gnashing teeth and blood-​stained claws. I did not. I found no one.
3) I rang. The doorbell for assistance is in the upper lefthand corner of the door jamb. No booby trap was set off nor was I spirited away.
4) I waited. After a minute or so (I didn’t dare ring twice to rouse the beast) a lady came to the door.
5) We dueled… civilly. I gave her my notice slip. She asked for ID. I gave her my ID, whose address did not match the package’s address. She said she needed something with an address that matched the package. I parried with some appropriately addressed mail. (Thank you my fore-​fallen Unilocalers) She conceded and retreated to her chambers to fetch her white flag, aka my package.
6) I conquered!

I got to meet a lady claiming to be the supervisor. And that explains a lot. The usps website said my packages were available for pickup. No problem, I head down there. I show the lady my tracking number and she REFUSED to even look. She kept babbling «It’s a generated message». I said then maybe they should fix their websites. She said it wasn’t broken so either she is an idiot, she is lazy or completely apathetic.
Save yourself the grief use UPS or FEDex in for Wicker Park/​West Town/​Etc.

Worst experiences of my life have happened here. I have thought after 40 some complaints with consumer affairs. 15 complaints with then postal inspection service, countless others to the postal regulatory commission that my mail delivery may get better, yeah right. Think again.
Over the last year of my mail has been a complete nightmare! I have had many packages mis-​delivered, never delivered, damaged and completely disappear. My passport was sent to me three times. Once it was delivered to the wrong person, the second time it was sent back to sender, and the last time I had to chase down my postal delivery person to get it from her because apparently she had no intent to deliver it to me. I hate USPS. I have started to get all my bills online and never have anything delivered unless it’s by UPS or FEDEX.
Every time I have come to the building it is always full of extremely angry people. The last time I was there, a Russian lady told me that even during communist times it was not as hard to get her mail as it is from this location!

Total embarrassment — meaning I would be to be a USPS employee. For those of us unfortunates who HAVE to go here, Lay on the bell and pray that someone shows up at the kiosk to help (gasp!) you. No, why would they? That would be WORK. Do yourself a favor — use FedEx and ups to receive your shipments. Or prepare yourself to wait and wait and wait
Another US institution fails us.