A Sporting Gesture: You Can Mail Taxes at Stadium or Arena

Trying to cover all the bases, the U.S. Postal Service is trying out a new play tonight to help procrastinating sports fans make the last-minute deadline for filing their tax returns: It is setting up temporary mail drops at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium and the Sports Arena.

A postal employee will be just inside Gate D at the stadium from 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. to collect returns from fans going to the Padres-Giants baseball game. Another collection box will be set up inside the Sports Arena’s north gate from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. to catch fans attending the indoor soccer match between Soccers and Steamers.

“This is the first time we’ve done it,” said Ken Boyd, post office spokesman. “It’s just a little extra added convenience.”

Otherwise, Boyd said, postal employees throughout the county have braced themselves for the usual rush of late mailers by extending mail pickup through midnight. Five lanes of motorists will be able to drive by the main post office on Midway Drive and drop their tax returns into large bins.

Despite the beefed-up collection effort, motorists can still expect to wait up to 30 minutes.

Last year, an estimated 27,000 cars used the drive-through lanes on Midway, and Boyd said he expects this year to be just as busy.

“We’ll start off slow with a couple of collectors and mail handlers out there,” and the number of handlers will be increased through the night.

At other mail drops in the city, the contents will be picked up until 7 p.m.

Elsewhere, the collection boxes at the main post offices in Chula Vista, El Cajon, Escondido and Oceanside will be emptied at midnight, Boyd said.

Post offices where returns can be mailed until midnight and still receive an April 15 postmark: 2535 Midway Drive, San Diego; 750 3rd Ave., Chula Vista; 401 W. Lexington Ave., El Cajon; 203 S. Orange St., Escondido, and 211 Brooks St., Oceanside.