Water intruded into Lakeland Post Office; reports of mold damage emerging

By T.S. Carter

 

LAKELAND, Lanier County, Georgia – Extensive damage from water that got into the Lakeland USPS (United States Post Office) during Hurricane Helene appears to be why the facility is still closed nearly seven months after the storm.

 

The statement on water intrusion by U.S. Representative Austin Scott’s office bolsters a so-far unverified report that the structure at 15 S. Valdosta Road, Lakeland has extensive mold damage.

 

“Our office has continued to stay in contact with USPS and local government leadership in Lakeland and Lanier County to expedite the timeline to get the Lakeland Post Office fully operational,” a spokesperson for Scott said.

 

“The facility experienced water intrusion after Hurricane Helene, which caused significant damage,” the spokesperson said. “Our office has stressed to the USPS that reopening this facility is a priority for Lanier County, and the USPS said additional repairs must be made to the building before it can reopen.”

 

Even Lakeland Mayor Bill Darsey is saying he has learned that the building has mold and staining problems.

 

The Post Office picture has been murky from the early days after Helene. One reason is that USPS officials have given little explanation for the long delay other than saying they have “addressed issues” with the building’s owner.

 

If any repair work has occurred, it has been done without the knowledge of David Henley, Lakeland’s long-time Lakeland Building Inspector, and without a permit from the Lakeland building department. Henley said in a recent interview he has never been called for an inspection of repair work.

 

Lakeland City Clerk Diane Westberry has shared that she “keeps looking everyday that I drive by the post office” and she has seen no sign of work getting done at the circa 1960 building the USPS rents from Valley Real Estate Company in Cordova, Tennessee through an agent identified by tax records as Alan Peeples of Dalton.

 

No one from private business or the government has applied for a building permit “to connect or do anything at the USPS Lakeland building since Hurricane Helene closed it,” Westberry said.  This fact was confirmed by Mayor Bill Darsey in the April city council meeting.

 

The importance of a building permit grows the longer a building stays shuttered, in this instance since September 27, Westberry noted. This is “particularly needed after six months since the building was closed.”

 

Westberry as well as others in Lakeland have expressed that they have never seen a tarp on the building’s roof, or any evidence of roof repairs.

 

Daily visual checks find no signs of activity inside or outside the Lakeland Post Office, according to several citizens attending Lakeland’s April City Council Meeting.

 

In January, a postal worker in Ray City reported that an email had gone out to USPS offices in the area stating that “electrical work has been done” but other repairs still had to be done.

 

If that is so, the electrical work has been done in a stealthy manner, according to those passing by the Lakeland Post Office daily and noticed no apparent activity.

 

Darsey, the Lakeland mayor, said he got the name and cell number of the building’s owner through the mayor of Cordova, Tennessee though he did not identify the owner as the Peeples listed in the Georgia Secretary of State Business Look-up records.

 

Here are a few things the agent is said to have told Darsey:

– The agent was not informed about the Post Office damage for 30 days after Helene, and so didn’t know to take any action.

– Valley Real Estate leases and manages 900 Post Office buildings, mostly in North Carolina and Tennessee. Lakeland is the farthest south of its postal buildings.

-The Lakeland building got a new roof in May 2024, slightly more than four months before Hurricane Helene.

– Electrical work has been done inside the building, but not hooked up to the main utility pole.

– The building agent knew of no standing water but had been told about indications of mold and staining.

– A postal inspector examined the building on January 23, 2025, but the mayor did not reveal the inspector’s assessment.

Front of the Lakeland Post Office building and a closeup of the “Temporarily Closed” notice on door.

Side of Lakeland Post Office building looking south on Valdosta Road

Front of the Lakeland Post Office on South Valdosta Road.

Northeast corner of the Lakeland Post Office building with obvious broken electrical wires dangling from the building.