Article 2 Rough Draft

EAST VILLAGE- - For about the past two years the St. Marks Bookstore at 31 Third Avenue has increasingly been facing the potential threat of having to close after thirty years because their landlord Cooper Union wants to raise the rent beyond what the store can handle.

When asked about the store’s unique sections and characteristics employee Shauna Westgate reminisced about what used to be a beautiful poetry section, a well-stocked selection of critical theory books and even a section dedicated to anarchy. “I wish we had a better answer for you, stock is really low right now and we’re hoping with increased sales because of all of the support we’ll be able to build it back up.”

According to Westgate the store started struggling about two years ago “things started thinning out and it’s just very sad because how full it used to be.”

It is interesting though because the only indication of this looming threat on the bookstore is not extremely obvious when you step inside beside a sign on the front door stating: “Find it Here, Buy it Here, Keep US Here”. Besides that when walking into the bookstore there is a lot of local support in the foyer of the shop with newspapers such as the Village Voice and The Onion, advertisements for local festivals and artists and a review from Citysearch in 2007 titled “If your ex walked off with your only copy of Lacan's "Ecrits," there's only one place to go.”

Once inside the store there is usually relaxing yet nondescript music playing such as a volume of “Ethiopiques”, to set the mood for a serene book buying experience. One customer who wished to remain anonymous, said that he has been coming to the store for years and thinks the store’s situation is very sad. “When I moved here thirty-five years ago there was a bookstore and a record store on every corner”. When asked about the increasing trend of bookstores closing and the rise of digital books he felt that “without them it’s very isolating and depressing because it takes away a place to browse and get together and meet people”.

One of the neighboring restaurants to the bookstore is The Barrel, and the bartender Jeremy Bacon said that the co-owner Bob Contant comes in almost everyday for lunch and that he’s “a great customer, very sweet but has not mentioned anything about the store’s situation” and was very surprised when informed about the potential threat.