Since 1977, New Yorkers have relied on indie stalwart St. Mark’s Bookshop for their zine, small press and hard-to-find theory needs; as well as for the store’s excellently curated (if somewhat cramped) reading series. But the Lower East Side institution, like many brick-and-mortar bookstores, is in dire financial straits: with book sales down, owners Bob Contant and Terry McCoy are facing the threat of closure unless they can talk Cooper Union into lowering St. Mark’s rent.
Last June, the Villager reported that over the past year, St. Mark’s has laid off almost all of its part-time workers and reduced full-time employee hours through New York’s shared work program. To maintain their own regular salaries, Contant told Bookforum that he and McCoy have been forced to draw from social security funds. While the owners will meet with Cooper Union landlords next Wednesday to renegotiate their rent, the story is already getting attention on Twitter: as of mid-afternoon Friday, an online petition to “Save St. Mark’s” (which you can sign here) had gathered over 2,600 signatures.