UPS en route to Alamo Colleges

The United Parcel Service Inc. is moving into the second floor of Fletcher Administration Center by the end of the month, Alamo Colleges’ store owner Fernando Aristeguieta said.

The store will be open from 8 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Monday to Friday.

UPS stores also will be available in place of mailrooms at Palo Alto, St. Philip’s, Northwest Vista and Northeast Lakeview colleges and St. Philip’s Southwest Campus.

There is no scheduled date set for the opening of the store at this college, Aristeguieta said.

The store will be 1,175 square feet and the storage room will be 195 square feet, Louis Kreusel, district facilities operations and construction management project manager, said.

The store will offer color and black-and-white printing or copying; binding services; wide format poster, Banner and Canvas printing services; laminating services; notary service; ID badges; office supplies; freight services; mailbox services; professional packaging; postal services and UPS shipping.

Aristeguieta said the store is beneficial because it is convenient for not only students and employees, but for local residents as well.

He said the stores at the colleges will employ students at district colleges.

There are currently four part-time workers hired, but Aristeguieta said there will be more hiring as the semester progresses.

Work-study students are able to work at the store or students can apply through UPS.

Students interested in applying should email store2773@theupsstore.com.

John Strybos, associate vice chancellor of facilities operation and construction management, said the total cost of construction is $132,400, which is paid by district funds.

The decision was passed March 27 by the Alamo Colleges trustees for contracting services to replace campus mailrooms.

The district will pay around $76,625 for fiscal year 2012 and $306,500 each year for fiscal years 2013-15 to FEJICO, LLC, and Two Step, LCC, franchisees of Mail Boxes Etc. Inc.

It will pay for the receiving and sorting of mail, as well as the delivery to each college and district offices.

Since facilities workers were staffing the mailroom, they were not doing other duties, Strybos said.

Facilities reached their staff limit, so they could simply not hire more employees, Styrbos said.

He said facilities staff could not readily maintain services because they were needed elsewhere.

“Throughout this past calendar year, any given day, one or more mailrooms have been closed for some, a part or all part of the day,” Strybos said.

He said the store will benefit students and employees because it is an open store, which can be used by anyone.

Strybos said the former mailroom was restricted to official college business.