Here’s Something: A New York Barnes & Noble Doesn’t Decide to Close
By Jotham Sederstrom May 19, 2011 5:56 pm
reprints
Woah. Barnes & Noble, which has seen its outposts shutter in parts of the city, has chosen to extend its lease on one of the busiest retail strips in the outer-boroughs. The bookstore’s executives signed a 22,178-square-foot renewal lease for its space at the Muss Development-owned 70-00 Austin Street space in Forest Hills. (Yes, dear reader, it’s out in Queens, but it’s still New York City.)
The bookseller will continue to share space in a 78,000-square-foot retail center with retailers like Men’s Wearhouse, TGI Fridays and Eddie Bauer, said brokers.
In a pattern that has plagued bookstores around the country, a Barnes & Noble shuttered on the Upper West Side, at a spot that was eventually leased by Century 21.
“Austin Street is among the top retail corridors in Queens,” said Jason Muss, principal of Muss Development, in a statement. “With a constant flow of pedestrian and vehicular traffic and even a place to park your car, Austin Street has a virtual parade of potential customers moving up and down the street and sidewalk all day long. And with its proximity to subways and buses on Queens Boulevard, the Long Island Railroad’s Forest Hill station, and major arteries including the Long Island and Van Wyck Expressways and the Grand Central Parkway, the area is easily accessible from just about anywhere in the city.”
