Tum-A-Lum closure near

Tum-A-Lum Lumber in Pomeroy may be closed by the end of the week, manager Ellis Johnson said. The store has been having a going out of business sale for the past two weeks, and many items have been sold, including cabinets and other fixtures. What remains when the sale is over will be hauled to the office in Walla Walla, Johnson said. Exactly when the sale is concluded is a matter for officials at Walla Walla to decide.

Photo by Mike Denuty

Site readied for post office

Demolition work on the old Tum-A-Lum Lumber Company building has been under way for the past week, to clear the site for construction of a new Pomeroy Post Office,

The U.S. Postal Service has awarded a contract to Harlan D. and Maxine H. Douglass of Spokane, for the new facility, according to Postmaster Bill Young. The Douglasses have agreed to build a 2,880 square foot facility on the southwest corner of llth and Main.

Jerry Reynolds, spokesman from the Postal Service's regional headquarters in San Bruno, Calif., said the Douglasses were one of six bidders on the project. They will exercise U.S. Postal Service options to purchase 21,600 square feet of property for $1 per square foot from Turn-A-Lum Lumber of Walla Walla.

When ready for occupancy in April 1981, the Postal Service will lease the property for $17,950 per year, for 15 years. There are also four five year renewal options.

A number of local individuals and members of the senior citizens group removed salvage material from the building last week, with Douglass and his crew knocking down the remains, with a bulldozer.

The old wood storage building was knocked down in less than a day, and by last weekend, much of the main building had already been knocked down.

Tum-A-Lum Lumber Company had occupied the building since the 1940's, moving there from what is now the liquor store. The property had formerly housed a Potlatch Lumber Yard.