Bank to buy former Naperville post office

The post office building in downtown Naperville likely will have a new tenant by the end of the year.

Naperville Bank & Trust announced this week it is under contract to purchase the 32,000-square-foot building at 5 S. Washington St., where it plans to open a banking facility.

There also are plans to lease space back to the United States Postal Service, which would operate a retail center inside the building, according to a news release.

The facility would have post office boxes and off-street parking.

Bank president Tom Miers said in the release that attention will be paid to preserving the architectural appointments of the 70-year-old building.

The permitting and approval process with the city has begun, he said.

The post office first considered selling the building in the summer of 2009 in an effort to downsize operations, but officials always said they wanted to keep a presence in downtown Naperville.