MIDDLEBURY — The very popular UPS Store at 105 Court St. in Middlebury will close on May 31, and the building in which it’s been located since 2014 has been sold.
Laura Flint, owner of the Middlebury UPS franchise, recently placed signs at the store announcing its impending closure. Reached by phone on Tuesday, Flint said her decision to close was based on damage to interior fixtures — such as cabinetry and computers — caused by major flooding in Middlebury last August. She determined replacement of the damaged fixtures to be cost-prohibitive and made the difficult decision to close the store and sell the 105 Court St. building.
The Middlebury UPS Store has long been a beehive of activity, providing a local place for people to send off packages. The store has delivered a variety of other services, including packing, copying and selling shipping supplies.
Faithful customers recently took to social media to voice dismay about the upcoming loss of the store.
“The UPS Store and its services will be missed,” Middlebury resident Nora Wright wrote in a recent edition of Front Porch Forum. “I certainly hope that the employees will find other good jobs. I always found them to be knowledgeable, helpful, courteous and patient.”
“It’s not just sending packages and shredding, it’s copying,” wrote FPF poster Chris Robbins. “First Main St. Stationery (in downtown Middlebury) closed & we had to go to the UPS store. Now is there any place to make large quantities, large format, or high-quality color copies?”
Some customers have been wondering if the Middlebury store’s closure might require them to go to Burlington or Rutland for their shipping needs.
Maybe not.
Middlebury’s Aubuchon Hardware is considering becoming a drop-off point for UPS packages, an employee of that store confirmed on Tuesday. And Flint said she’d be happy to discuss the logistics of opening and running a UPS franchise with anyone considering such a move. She can be reached by email at store2601@theupsstore.com.
While Flint was unable to share details at this point, she said the buyer of 105 Court St. plans to use it for a commercial venture.
Stay tuned.
Reporter John Flowers is at johnf@addisonindependent.com.
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