Downtown Crossing/Financial District | Discussion

Dammit, I loved to stop in this Borders, very convenient for me and had some books I'm interested in.... The layout really clicked for me... I kinda refuse to look at books online, I just can't do it... oh well, no more fun in bookstores...
 
I have noticed over the last week or so, that they have not been displaying books and magazines along the windows.
 
Lurker said:
That's horrible losing the DTX Borders. It's even worse with the one in Copley Square being shuttered. The only bookstore left in the area, aside from the universities, is the Brattle.
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There's also Commonwealth Books in the basement of the Old South Meetinghouse--it and Brattle have teamed to rob me of many a saturday!
 
There are two Commonwealth Books locations a short walk from each other in this neighborhood. That and Brattle would be the only remaining book presence in all of downtown Boston.

Would much healthier Barnes & Noble possibly take over the Borders location?
 
That building better not fall into disrepair. It would make a cool Crate & Barrel maybe, seeing as how they lost their Faneuil location (when the 35 yr lease ended).
 
datadyne007 said:
That building better not fall into disrepair. It would make a cool Crate & Barrel maybe, seeing as how they lost their Faneuil location (when the 35 yr lease ended).
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Not likely as there is a C&B about 4 blocks down on Boylston. Maybe a Pottery Barn?
 
I phoned the downtown Borders store and confirmed the rumor. Liquidators are arriving on July 1.
 
saulblum said:
How many new-book stores in Boston proper would there be at all? The B&N at the Pru and the BU bookstore, a few other college bookstores. Am I missing others?
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Trident Booksellers & Cafe at 338 Newbury Street. A few other independents scattered through JP, Roslindale, and West Roxbury.

Otherwise, for general bookstores, that's it. There was a Symposium Books in the Hotel Commonwealth building in Kenmore Square, but their website no longer lists the location, so I guess it's gone too.
 
Major, major loss.

I visit this Borders pretty much every weekday. Great employees, to a person. Also a nicely managed cafe upstairs... Borders and Seattle's Best are so hands-off the cafe actually serves as one of the areas finest indoor civic spaces. I'll qualify "finest" civic spaces by just stating that the cafe doesn't absolutely require a commercial transaction for a tourist or visitor to relax for a little while.
 
Sicilian said:
Major, major loss.

I visit this Borders pretty much every weekday. Great employees, to a person. Also a nicely managed cafe upstairs... Borders and Seattle's Best are so hands-off the cafe actually serves as one of the areas finest indoor civic spaces. I'll qualify "finest" civic spaces by just stating that the cafe doesn't absolutely require a commercial transaction for a tourist or visitor to relax for a little while.
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I really enjoy this Borders as well. It's a perfect way to relax indoors on a hot day like today before or after work. Plus you get to absorb all the great architecture too. There are not many places like this (if any) for respite in DTX.
 
I kind of shudder to imagine the street around this area now. It definitely brings a steady stream of pedestrians.
 
If the landlord story is true, I wonder if they may have noticed all the for lease signs in that neighborhood. Including the one still on the old B&N space.

Let's hope they already have someone else lined up.
 
Pierce said:
I think there is one in Quincy Market, which is about 4 blocks away, maybe he confused the two....
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I just said that the QM location closed last year when the 35-yr lease ended. The space has since been redeveloped into separate stores.
 
Let's face it, Newbury is the shopping scene now. Maybe we can make DTX an awesome evening/night place. A nice laser bowling alley with a sports bar and pool/arcade area attached. Maybe a place for indoor F1 or gokarts, too, or something. So places for people who go clubbin'. F- yeah! Okay, maybe that's a bit tacky or corny or strange or whatever... but, seriously, I think that'd be the most lively thing imaginable at this time. All of the shopping is on Newbury now and there's no sign of it coming back. Lets make DTX a night spot which can draw all ages. And it could still sustain some level of day traffic, too. You could probably fit all the aforementioned in the Filene's plot alone, so you still maintain the already existing storefronts.
 
Perhaps this was a viable location for Borders, but was likely harmed by the larger financial issues facing Borders as a whole. This place always had lots of people waiting to buying books etc. all the time. But who knows how high the rent is there? When I read on Boston.com that the now closing Curious George bookstore was paying 15k a month for a compact 1,000 square feet in Harvard Sq. (plus employee salary and health care etc.) it makes you gasp at how high overhead can be for retailers.

I still think there is a market for more and better retail in Downtown Crossing. The best way forward is more mixed use. Regarding retail, it will be forever diminished over its peak heyday, but it serves a much different market than Newbury St. and the foot traffic is very substantial.
 
The second Commonwealth Books location on Boylston Street closed a long time ago. I forgot about the basement location on Milk Street. They actually had a decent selection of Russian and Ukrainian books a decade ago.
 
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