[RP TownTalk] this is crazy (USPS zipcode/name "system")

[Dwight Holmes]

On 4/4/07, CHRISTINA DAVIS <book-smart at verizon.net> wrote:
Or perhaps in the
> intervening decade the post office has gotten easier to work with?

The more i look at this, the more nonsensical and inconsistent the
USPS's system is.  Just in our area, we have small towns that have
their very own zipcode and don't share it with others (Bladensburg &
Mt Ranier).  Then, we have small towns on the zipcode marquee that
share with everybody (Hyattsville, College Park, Brentwood).  We have
at least one unincorporated "town" with its own zipcode (Lanham) and
then we have at least three incorporated towns like Riverdale Park
that not only don't get their own zipcode, but aren't even "acceptable
names" in the zipcode system.  That means if someone wants to write
you and is looking up your zipcode and knows you live in Riverdale
Park or Edmonston or *parts of* Cheverly they'll get confused. But
most confused of all if you live in Riverdale Park!!

If you go to http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown.jsp and type in
Edmonston MD you get this:

20781    (EDMONSTON, MD IS NOT ACCEPTABLE - USE HYATTSVILLE)

So your town isn't acceptable but at least it exists!

But if you type in Riverdale Park MD you get this:

We're sorry! We were unable to process your request.

Please complete the field(s) indicated below.
* Required Fields
All field labels with a * are required 			
* City 		
	
  		Please enter a city.

So unlike Edmonston which exists but isn't acceptable, Riverdale Park
doesn't even exist. <sigh>

Here's what I found while taking a look at the zipcodes and towns that
surround Riverdale Park, and a couple of other nearby ones.

some results from area zipcodes from usps.com's zipcode search page
(http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown_zip.jsp) are below. the zipcode
map at http://www.hyattsvillewiki.com/page/Hyattsville+Zip+Code+Map is
also very useful!  (population and area are from wikipedia;
determination of which towns are incorporated is based on the ADC
map's use of yellow coloring of town areas)

in sum we have:

1] Incorporated towns that appear to have a coterminus relationship
with their zipcode:
Mt Ranier (pop 8498, area .65 sq mi) (20712 -- no other towns or areas listed)
Bladensburg (pop 7661, area 1.0 sq mi) (20710 - no other town or areas listed)
(Why can't we be more like Bladensburg!?!)

2] Incorporated towns *not* recognized by the USPS zipcode system:
Riverdale Park (pop 6690, area 1.6 sq mi) (20737, as Riverdale)
Cheverly (20781, as Hyattsville -- but ok within 20784 and 20785)
Edmonston (20782, as Hyattsville)

3] Incorporated towns recognized as "acceptable":
University Park (20782)
Berwyn Heights (20740)
Colmar Manor (20722)
Cottage City (20722)
North Brentwood (spelled 4 different ways!) (20722)
Glenarden (20706)
Landover Hills (20784)
New Carrollton (20784)
Cheverly (20784 and 20785)

4] *Un*incorporated areas that are an "actual city name"
Lanham (20706)

5] *Un*incorporated areas recognized as "acceptable"
Chillum (20782)
West Hyattsville (20782)
Lanham Seabrook (20706)
Seabrook (20706)

I pulled the above "actual," "acceptable" and "not acceptable" city
names in the USPS system zipcode searches
(http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown_zip.jsp) for the following: 20737,
20782, 20781, 20740, 20722, 20710, 20712, 20706, 20785, 20784:

20737:
Actual City name in 20737
RIVERDALE, MD

20782:
Actual City name in 20782
HYATTSVILLE, MD
Acceptable City names in 20782
CHILLUM, MD
UNIVERSITY PA, MD
UNIVERSITY PARK, MD
W HYATTSVILLE, MD
WEST HYATTSVILLE, MD
Not Acceptable
AVONDALE, MD
GREEN MEADOW, MD
LEWISDALE, MD
PRINCE GEORGES METRO CTR, MD

20781:
Actual City name in 20781
HYATTSVILLE, MD
Not Acceptable
AVONDALE, MD
CHEVERLY, MD
EDMONSTON, MD
ROGERS HEIGHTS, MD
TUXEDO, MD

20740:
Actual City name in 20740
COLLEGE PARK, MD
Acceptable City names in 20740
BERWYN HEIGHTS, MD
BERWYN HTS, MD
Not Acceptable
BERWYN, MD
NORTH COLLEGE PARK, MD

20722
Actual City name in 20722
BRENTWOOD, MD
Acceptable City names in 20722
COLMAR MANOR, MD
COTTAGE CITY, MD
N BRENTWOOD, MD
NO BRENTWOOD, MD
NORTH BRENTWO, MD
NORTH BRENTWOOD, MD
Not Acceptable
BRENTWD, MD

20710
Actual City name in 20710
BLADENSBURG, MD

20712
Actual City name in 20712
MOUNT RAINIER, MD
Not Acceptable
MT RAINIER, MD

20706
Actual City name in 20706
LANHAM, MD  [which is not incorporated]
Acceptable City names in 20706
GLENARDEN, MD
LANHAM SEABROOK, MD
SEABROOK, MD

20785
Actual City name in 20785
HYATTSVILLE, MD
Acceptable City names in 20785
CHEVERLY, MD
LANDOVER, MD
N ENGLEWOOD, MD
NORTH ENGLEWOOD, MD
Not Acceptable
ARDMORE, MD
PALMER PARK, MD

20784
Actual City name in 20784
HYATTSVILLE, MD
Acceptable City names in 20784
CHEVERLY, MD
LANDOVER HILLS, MD
LANDOVER HLS, MD
NEW CARROLLTN, MD
NEW CARROLLTON, MD
Not Acceptable
LANHAM, MD

Dwight Holmes
Riverdale PARK, MD