Misplaced Medication, Mail a Growing Concern in McKinney

Neighbors in two subdivisions have multiple, common complaints involving mail delivery

Misplaced medicine. Packages delivered to the wrong address. Late bills. These are just some of the problems that some of the people who live in at least two McKinney subdivisions are dealing with.

"Stuff happens, but not all the time. Not two or three times a week," said Deb Maicach, who lives in the Erwin Farms development, just west of North Hardin Boulevard. "It has become more than an inconvenience."

Instead of individual mailboxes, both the Erwin Farms development and a newer portion of the neighboring Timber Creek development utilize community boxes, sometimes called a cluster box, which features a single, freestanding box that contains mail slots for several homes

Maicach said she has had multiple misplaced deliveries, including a check she was expecting and a small package containing a $150 purchase that was mistakenly put into the mail slot for another address.

Christina Clark lives next door to Maicach, and she noted that her thyroid medication was mistakenly placed in someone else’s mail box.

Even more than misplaced mail, Clark said she has been especially concerned by two recent mistakes that she blames on the delivery person – a ring of mailbox keys was left on top of the community box last week, and earlier this month the door on the back of the box was left open with everyone’s mail slots exposed.

"It was wide open, with the key in it,” Clark said, exasperated. "With the key in it."

Both neighbors blame the slew of mistakes on the backup mail carriers who are filling in for their regular mailman, who they say has been unable to make deliveries recently due to a medical concern.

A representative from the United States Postal Service stressed that the organization wants to apologize for the troubles experienced in Erwin Farms and Timber Creek.

"Local management has been made aware of the concerns and is taking steps to address the issue," said a USPS spokesperson.

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