Save St. Mark's Books (petition)
Mon, 09/12/2011 - 2:10pm
Below is an email from Joyce Ravitz, a MoveOn member in New York City who created a petition at SignOn.org that is getting a lot of attention and may be of interest to people in your area. If you have concerns or feedback about this petition, click here.
Dear New York City MoveOn member,
The St. Mark's Bookshop has a long tradition in the Lower East Side and serves an admirable and increasingly rare function. But St. Mark's is struggling to pay the market rent that Cooper Union is charging them at 31 3rd Ave. A significant rent concession by Cooper Union could save this irreplaceable neighborhood institution.
That's why I created a petition to the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art on SignOn.org, which says:
The St. Mark's Bookshop, a vital Lower East Side cultural institution, needs a rent low enough to survive. Join the Cooper Square Committee petitioning Cooper Union, the bookstore's landlord, to give St. Mark's Bookshop a lower rent.
Will you sign the petition? Click here to add your name, and then pass it along to your friends:
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=263861&id=30890-663882-KnL4y1x&t=2
Thanks!
–Joyce Ravitz
The text above was written by Joyce Ravitz, not by MoveOn staff, and MoveOn is not responsible for the content. This email was sent through MoveOn's secure system, and your information has been kept private.
Together we have scored a victory for the St. Mark’s Bookshop and the Lower East Side! Cooper Union has agreed to a new one-year lease to reduce their monthly rent to $17,500. The bookshop has a $2,500/month rent reduction and Cooper Union will forgive back rent owed. This is a $37,500 win for the bookstore. We won through a lot of organizing -- including your signature among the 44,128 on our online petition. Thank you!
The organization that led this fight -- the Cooper Square Committee -- knows that bookshops are a crucial part of our beloved Lower East Side community. We have organized for over 52 years to ensure that the Lower East Side remains an affordable home to the diverse multi-ethnic community of working people and artists that has continued to draw so many people to it.
Join Our Victory Celebration and Mark their 34th anniversary serving the community
St. Mark’s Bookshop:
31 Third Avenue (corner of 9th Street)
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2011
5:30-7:30pm
* Celebrate our win, meet up with friends and neighbors
* Learn more about our community
* Learn more about the Cooper Square Committee (You can also learn more about the Cooper Square Committee -- its history battling Robert Moses and later gentrification, and its current tenants’ organizing --
here: http://www.coopersquare.org/)
If you can't come in person, check out the St. Mark's Bookshop website: http://www.stmarksbookshop.com/
Peace with justice,
Joyce Ravitz
Chairperson
Cooper Square Committee
61 East 4th Street
New York, NY 10003
tel (212) 228-8210
fax (646) 602-2260
e-mail: Joyce@coopersquare.org
web http://www.coopersquare.org