BOOK CULTURE TO OPEN NEW STORE IN LONG ISLAND CITY

May. 8, 2017 - DNA Info

Book Culture on West 112th Street. Book Culture on West 112th Street.DNAinfo/Emily FrostCOURT SQUARE — Book Culture, a popular book store with three locations on the Upper West Side, will open its first shop outside of Manhattan in Long Island City, according to a recent report and a post on the company’s Facebook page.

The storied bookseller will open a 2,300-square-foot space at 26-09 Jackson Ave. between 44th Drive and 43rd Avenue, according an article published Friday in the New York Times. Book Culture confirmed the news in a post on its Facebook page.

“The rumors are true,” the company wrote. “Book Culture will be opening a 4th store in LIC!”

The book shop already has three stores on Manhattan’s west side, including its original location in Morningside Heights which has been serving the neighborhood and the nearby Columbia University campus for 20 years.

The new Court Square store is slated to occupy a building owned by the developer Rockrose, which has been looking for years to bring more retail amenities to neighborhood, where it owns several buildings and has more under construction.

Rockrose also owns the properties that house nearby M. Wells Steakhouse and Toby’s Estate Coffee, as well as a vacant lot on the corner of Crescent Street and 44th Road that’s been frequently used for community events and which residents are trying to stop Rockrose from developing.

Reps from both Book Culture and Rockrose did not immediately respond to questions about the future shop, which is slated to open next year, according to the Times.

There are currently no designated book stores in Long Island City. The next closest is in Astoria, where the Astoria Bookshop has been open since 2013.