Cerritos

Construction has begun on a 7,508-square-foot post office on the northeast corner of Carmenita Road and 183rd Street in Cerritos. The new post office is being built by the Alle Co., a Los Angeles-based construction firm, at a cost of about $856,000. The postal Service is finanicing the construction by the Cerritos City Council has agreed to spend an additional $120,000 on landscaping and architectural modifications to the Spanish-style building. Completion of the project-including a solar heating system and 1,000 postal boxes-is expected by early next year.

With a population of about 55,000, Cerritos has been the largest city in Los Angeles County without its own post office. The closest one has been on 183rd Street in neighboring Artesia, where traffic tie-ups leading into the post office’s parking lot are frequent and long lines for counter service have been common in recent years, particularly at holiday time.