Cal’s Books reopens after flooding threatened permanent closure last year
The beloved local bookstore was bought by a group of young people hoping to save it from permanently closing. They were able to gather enough funds to buy the store from its previous owner and reopen.
Cal’s Books, a local used bookstore in Redding that’s long been loved by many in the community, has officially reopened after last year’s flooding forced its closure for months.
Last December’s winter storm caused Cal’s Books to flood with about two feet of water, damaging tens of thousands of books and many of the shelves supporting them. After assessing the damage, Carl Anger, the store’s former owner, made the tough decision to permanently close the store. But a group of young people, who said they were heartbroken about the store’s closure, stepped up to take over the store, revitalize it and eventually reopen its doors.
The store is now operating under the name Cal’s Books Cooperative, as confirmed by a business registration on file with the California Secretary of State. Quetza Perez, one of the cofounders of the business, said she’s incredibly proud of the community’s outpouring of support for the store which made reopening possible. The cooperative’s GoFundMe has raised more than $15,000.
“We knew that when we took on this project, there was going to be a lot of support,” she said, “because Cal’s Books, it’s the oldest bookstore in Redding, and it has a community that views this bookstore like a second home. Seeing how excited people were to support a bunch of mid-20-year-olds doing their best to revive a bookstore that they love is inspiring.
“Honestly, the world can be a scary place,” she continued, “but this is a little nugget of hope.”
The bookstore officially reopened on March 5. Perez said it took a lot of effort to get to this point. The group had to clean floors that were caked with silt, put shelves back together, throw away damaged books and reorganize the remaining ones. She said the group also worked with a lawyer to organize the business under an LLC.
But there is still more work to be done, Perez said. Books that were on the bottom two shelves throughout the store when the flood occurred still need to be replaced, she said. The group also plans to create a database of the tens of thousands of books in the store so that the inventory can be digitally cataloged. Eventually, the cooperative hopes to move the store to a less flood-prone area.
Despite the damage caused by the flood, all the cleaning and a change in ownership, the store still has the same iconic, old bookstore feel that Cal’s has carried for decades, and the new owners plan to keep it that way.
Cal’s Books Cooperative is located at 5242 Westside Rd. and is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
See more photos of Cal’s Books Cooperative below.
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