One of NYC's Oldest Spanish Bookstore's Closing

One of the city's oldest Spanish-language bookstores is closing. LibrerDia Lectorum will close its West 14th Street storefront on September 30th.

The store, which is now owned by Scholastic Company, has been on 14th Street for 47 years. They considered moving to a different location, but decided they will shift their retail operations to this new thing called "the internet"

Landlord Ken Gutierrez, whose father founded the shop, said he is very upset that a huge company like Scholastic wouldn't come up with a little extra cash for a new lease. Yeah, no shit.

Gutierrez says he offered a new lease with rent that was 30% below market rates, but was turned down.

Since it opened in 1960, Lectorum has served as a vibrant mecca for Latino culture and has hosted writers like Isabel Allende and Eduardo Lago. The neighbourhood has gentrified over the years and Latino foot traffic is way down.