This is about ending legacy addresses that still get mail to their door instated of a community mailbox like the rest of us
And, If you are disabled you an still get it to your door.
79
SomeDumbGamer2 days ago
+14
Is it really that uncommon to have a personal mailbox in Canada? How interesting. I’d never heard of that and I live in New England which isn’t far. I’m surprised I haven’t tbh. I even watch a few Canadian content YouTubers and they haven’t brought it up that I’ve seen.
14
pensivegargoyle2 days ago
+3
What happened with that is that at some point (I recall it being in the mid 1980s) it was decided that new homes and neighbourhoods would have to get their mail from community boxes while delivery to the door continued for everyone else.
3
SomeDumbGamer2 days ago
+1
Ahhhh
1
Linooney2 days ago
+2
No, all the older houses have one, it just goes unused most of the time now.
2
Appropriate-Diver3011 day ago
+2
The community mailboxes have multiple locked mailboxes in it, one for each household. They are typically at the end of a street. They are not communal mailboxes. You can google what they look like (I failed at attaching a photo)
2
bitknight122 hr ago
+1
They have them in US too btw. When I lived in a condominium we had the same thing at the beginning of the street.
1
Necessary_Ad_2382 days ago
+35
Canadian here - haven't had mail delivery to my door since 2008. It has not affected my life in any meaningful way.
I just go to the box maybe once every 2 weeks. Anything spam / mailer goes back into the outgoing mail s***, and anything addressed to me I look into just getting it emailed. I get maybe 1-2 real pieces is mail/month.
35
KoolFM2 days ago
+13
Can you explain what "the box" is to a non-Canadian? Is it not attached to your actual house (or equivalent) or is at the end of the garden or outside the property or what?
13
JadedLeafs2 days ago
+35
A box somewhere on the street that gets the mail if everyone that lives on that street or area. Each box has a bunch of smaller boxes with a number on it, each person gets a assigned a box number and corresponding key to their specific box where they pick up their mail. There's a larger box for packages in the community boxes.
When you receive a parcel you get a key in your personal box that's used to unlock the bigger parcel box. After you take your parcel you drop the key into a little s*** that gets picked up by the mail person.
35
IM_GONNA_SHOOOT2 days ago
+14
Pretty much what we do for apartment complexes in the US
14
Sensitive_Box_2 days ago
+3
That's pretty much all I see for any modern neighborhoods in the US.
3
IM_GONNA_SHOOOT2 days ago
+2
Hmmm, idk about that. I’ve always lived in a neighborhood, and it’s always come to my mailbox or front door. Never a public box.
2
Sensitive_Box_2 days ago
+3
I deliver packages. So it must be dependent on city/state.
3
Solnari1 day ago
+1
I work for a mass builder and most newer neighborhoods are getting CBUs (Cluster box units) instead of individual mailboxes. As we continue to defund the postal service you'll see a lot more of these pop up.
1
Maeros2 days ago
+3
That sounds absolutely amazing
3
Necessary_Ad_2382 days ago
+15
I like it. Don't have a mailbox at all on my house, and parcels go into a lock box paid for by the feds so no porch pirate risk.
15
SillyGoatGruff2 days ago
+9
Except if you have to go out to get it in shitty weather. Then it's less amazing
9
Demalab2 days ago
+5
You just stop briefly while driving by or wait for better weather.
5
SillyGoatGruff2 days ago
+6
I'd have to walk most of the time unfortunately, and sometimes in winter "better" weather takes a while.
I'm not arguing against them mind you, just pointing out a flaw that takes a bit of shine off the "absolutely amazing" notion lol
6
Demalab2 days ago
-6
Yes I see your point. Sadly their business model didn’t progress to remain affordable. We pay the executive team who are supposed to be leaders in their field exceedingly well but it would seem like many areas in manufacturing they are progressive or flexible enough to be able to maintain operations.
-6
the_eluder2 days ago
+10
They aren't a business, they are a service.
10
Demalab2 days ago
They are incorporated as a crown not for profit corporation subject to the same operating laws as any other corporation operating in Canada. All charitable organizations and not for profits need to be incorporated to operate in Canada. Crown corporations providing service are not exempt.
0
mattw082 days ago
-4
A service that is supposed to be self sustaining.
-4
SillyGoatGruff2 days ago
+1
Huh? Manufacturing?
1
Demalab2 days ago
My point is we pay our executives regardless of their sector a lot of money for bad business operating models when their business plans seem to continuously include government subsidies and the threat of closure. As tax payers we desire better.
0
rlbond862 days ago
+5
We have these in the US too
5
EngineeringDevil2 days ago
+1
only in some neighborhoods
1
Sammy812 days ago
+1
Like Canada
1
Double-ended-dildo-2 days ago
+1
All new builds after 1986
1
Necessary_Ad_2382 days ago
+7
It's a bank of boxes that service an entite community that looks like this.
[community mailbox](https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/10/3661803_web1_community-mailboxes-2.jpg?w=1000)
You don't have to add anything special to your mailing address; Canada Post knows that the mail for 123 main St just goes in box 2468 and you have a key.
7
LondonC2 days ago
+7
Put a red dot in your mailbox and you won’t get spam
7
Tikan2 days ago
+5
They just ignore it in my experience.
5
skylla052 days ago
+23
Mail carrier here, you have to put a note.
Most carriers will respect the dot, but our actual policy is flyers can only be denied if you have a written/printed note. Some carriers are hardliners when it comes to policy and will still give you flyers if you only have a dot. And more carriers are following the rules strictly because they’re starting to crackdown on us harder.
If they’re ignoring the note, file a complaint. And don’t just call your post office. Do it through the Canada post web site. That way their supervisor will get it (their actual boss) instead of the postmaster or lead hand of the post office (not their boss).
23
Tikan2 days ago
+3
I've had the note in the past and I put it on file at my post office (my last community only had a central post office). I really just don't care enough at this point to fight it. If they ignore it, it goes straight in the outgoing mail bin again. I'm a big supporter of Canada Post in general and I know flyers are a big revenue generator so it really doesn't matter to me. Just feels wasteful.
3
IM_GONNA_SHOOOT2 days ago
+3
Interesting reading this. I put a note in my apartment mailbox (one with a key in a giant row of them) and the mailman or woman put a note back saying “that ‘JUNK MAIL’ pays my salary!” It was weird! I thought it would just work like that.
I’m American, unfortunately.
3
Necessary_Ad_2382 days ago
+2
Yep. Hence why it goes back into the outgoing s***.
2
Tikan2 days ago
+2
LOL. I do the same thing.
2
EkbyBjarnum2 days ago
+6
Do not put ad mail in the outgoing mail s***. If you dont want it, throw it in the recycling. If you don't want to receive admail at all, put up a no admail notice.
Letter carriers do not have a protocol for eliminating delivered admail and being caught throwing it away could land them in serious trouble with supervisors. You can throw away your own trash if trash is what you think it is.
6
Necessary_Ad_2382 days ago
-5
i have the red dot. they ignore it - they can have it back.
-5
EkbyBjarnum2 days ago
+5
Chances are your red dot is not readily visible to the mail carrier.
Otherwise it likely would have been flagged by a supervisor doing an ad mail audit by now.
You should put a note that says no ad mail, and for assurity, opt in to consumers choice on the website so you know for sure its in the system.
No letter carrier is delivering ad mail that they don't have to.
5
WiseKarmaCat2 days ago
+2
Why do you give your spam back to the mail man? They are just doing their job
2
evilpercy2 days ago
-1
Mail delivery needs to be Monday, Wednesday Friday. Package delivery needs to be expanded.
-1
[deleted]2 days ago
-6
[deleted]
-6
Demalab2 days ago
+2
The price of husky food is going up as well. Time to go solar with the dog sled! lol
2
[deleted]2 days ago
-1
[deleted]
-1
NewCydonian2 days ago
+3
Rather than use the tax dollars to have them brought to you. Yes. They will.
3
balooaroos2 days ago
Most people already do and long have. They're really going to make the people who were getting special treatment without paying any more walk one block to the mailbox like the rest of us.
0
Snowkaul2 days ago
+4
I know what you're saying but my house doesn't have a sidewalk so it's kinda shitty to walk to wherever they want to put the mailbox. Otherwise I don't care.
4
thesneakersnake2 days ago
-3
Can we get delivery on weekends too?
-3
moreesq2 days ago
-2
Does anyone have a sense of how many postal carriers were no longer needed with the centralized distribution of mail to the street or community boxes? This is an American asking who thinks it could be a great idea in the populous areas of our country at least.
-2
EkbyBjarnum2 days ago
+1
In the 10 depots its been announced for over the next two years, five of them are targeting 30-35% staff reduction. 4 are targeting 35%-40%, and one is targeting 25%-30%
1
Exciting_Farmer63952 days ago
-18
I'd like to be able to respond to any physical mail that anyone sends me with an error 405 - Method Not Allowed.
You can email me instead.
If CP is not going to service my address, I'd like to stop receiving mail altogether.
-18
JaVelin-X-2 days ago
+12
the problem then, is now you'd have a wholly private, for profit company that controls the last and only secure communication avenue with your government
54 Comments