101-year-old Oakland newsstand to close tonight

[mooseandsquirrel]

Source: SFGate

06-25) 10:42 PDT OAKLAND -- In another sign that the printed word may be going the way of polar ice caps, the renowned 101-year-old De Lauer's newsstand on Broadway in Oakland is going out of business.

"We have to close," said Charles De Lauer, the 91-year-old proprietor whose father started the enterprise selling papers from small wagons in 1907. "Things just got too hard."

The 24-hour-a-day store that once sold newspapers and magazines from around the world will shut down at 10 p.m. tonight, store manager Fasil Lemme said today.

"This is a business that time is passing by because everybody has a computer," said De Lauer's accountant Joe Churchward. "Your news is at the click of a button."

snip

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/06/25/BAM411EE55.DTL

---

Just another thing disappearing from my aging life that once upon a time I knew so well

m&s
http://moose-and-squirrel.com

[CottonBear]

1. We just lost Barnett's Newsstand in my town. It was a downtown institution.

Barnett's closed for the same reasons as De Lauer's. :)

[polichick]

2. Bummer! Our town newsstand closed a few years ago...

...after a century ~ what a loss!

[villager]

3. First Cody's, now this! I used to go in there while waiting for AC Transit buses...

...in my erstwhile youth...

[anigbrowl]

4. Too bad. I used to make a point of shopping there whenever I was in Oakland

Occasionally I feel a bit guilty about this whole Internet thing. i was one of the bright-eyed technologists advocating the elimination of paper in the early 1990s.

[Indenturedebtor]

5. Yeah it is a shame but at the same time the internet is much better

Both for Democracy and for the environment. At least with the internet its a two way conversation. If we could just get rid of TV and make all communication bi-directional there may be hope for our society yet!

[snooper2]

6. Pretty soon, all newspapers..

Will be electronic, and paper will have gone the way of the...





Think of the trees we will save :) :) :)




GOBAMA!

[mooseandsquirrel]

8. Er...

People print gazillion of pages from the Internet thus destroying trees, right? But yes, office paper is recyclable too.

m&s
http://moose-and-squirrel.com

[wryter2000]

7. Nooooooooo

Not DeLauer's. What next -- Fenton's, Ratto's?

:cry:

[Ian David]

9. John Mccain has been getting his afternoon paper there since the day it opened. n/t

[HughBeaumont]

15. That's 100% FALSE!

Republicans don't read.

;)

[timtom]

10. I think I remember going there late at night and buying

some books in the mid 60's. I used to live just off Broadway on 40th St., I believe it was.

I'm so sorry it's closing.

[galledgoblin]

11. a wifi point should go in it's place

De Lauer's wifi access

[KansDem]

12. I wonder if this guy ever visited this store?

[villager]

13. Stay of Execution! Doors to stay open! Outpouring of support, landlord waives rent, etc.:

From SF Gate tonight:


06-25) 18:00 PDT OAKLAND -- Oakland's famous De Lauer's newsstand may yet live.

The 101-year-old institution on Broadway had announced it was going out of business, but the news prompted so many offers of help and support that it will continue operating for the time being, proprietor Charles De Lauer said late this afternoon.

This morning, the store was planning to close at 10 p.m. tonight, but an outpouring of support turned those plans upside-down, De Lauer said.

"We're getting people from all over the place," he said. "They just can't stand to see it closed. The whole thing is just remarkable."

Store manager Fasil Lemme said late today, "We're going to continue the business. The city is stepping in to help us."

There have even been a couple of offers to buy the business, and the landlord has sent word not to worry about the rent, De Lauer said.

Keira Williams, retail specialist for business development services for the city of Oakland, said she and another city staffer met with Lemme once already and that she plans to meet with him again Monday.

She said the city may be able to offer assistance with obtaining grants or loans but that no firm plans have been made.

[salin]

14. what a great turnaround - and nice next step to the story! eom

[mulsh]

16. great news. I've been going to DeLauers since it was across the

street. It survived the destruction of downtown Oakland from BART construction and urban renewal I hope it continues to survive. I usually buy magazines and newspapers there at least once a month. I hope we can get the word out to the folks who are shop lifting to the tune of $70-100k per year to knock it off. Glad to see the staff won't be out of work at least for a little while longer.

one question, how did the SF Chron manage to print slightly positive news about Oakland? According to their reports my town is a cess pit of crime and corruption.

"am I bitter? just a tad."

[musiclawyer]

17. Half the people who work at the Chron live in Oakland

They know it's a cool place to live, so positive stories get out once and a while.