Effective Thursday, July 1, 2010, the U.S. Postal Service is adding a new ZIP Code and also making changes to ZIP Code boundaries in the Surprise and Sun City West area to keep up with an expanding number of deliveries in the area.

With the change, a new 85378 ZIP Code will be assigned to Surprise delivery addresses. About 3,500 delivery customers are affected by these changes. The boundaries of the current 85374 ZIP Code area will be revised as a result of this change. (A map showing the new ZIP Code boundaries accompanies this news release.)

All customers living in areas affected by the ZIP Code changes have received letters with their new ZIP Code information, according to Mark Strong, Sun City postmaster.

Beginning July 1, customers in the new Surprise 85378 ZIP Code area who receive notices for letters or parcels requiring a signature will pick up those items from the Sun City West postal station (19437 N. New Tradition Rd.), Strong added. The Surprise Branch facility at 14955 W. Bell Rd. will continue to offer retail services.

Strong asks that all customers who receive the notification letter take note of their new ZIP Code and use it in their correspondence beginning in July. He explained that ZIP Codes have a limited capacity of addresses before they become overburdened as tools for handling mail sorting and delivery.

For a one-year grace period, the USPS will recognize both the new and replaced ZIP Codes to minimize any customer inconvenience. This one-year period allows customers time to notify regular correspondents and make changes to stationery, etc.

"These changes are necessary so we can continue to provide excellent mail service,” Strong said. “ZIP Codes were created to provide efficient and effective mail delivery. With these changes, we will be able to continue providing the level of service our customers expect for years to come."

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A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 150 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no direct support from taxpayers. With 36,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, the Postal Service relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $68 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 28th in the 2009 Fortune 500.