Rent increase forces C. Falls bookstore to close

The Columbia Falls Library Association pared down remaining inventory Saturday at its used bookstore as the nonprofit group closed the business.

A dramatic increase in rent made it difficult to continue. Longtime volunteer Carmen Wyman said when the building recently changed hands, rent went from $500 a month to $1,250.

“What they’re asking in rent is a very fair price for the space; it’s just not possible for a nonprofit that gives more than it gets,” Wyman said.

She said the 2,500-square-foot space served the nonprofit for years. Due to generous community donations, the nonprofit group already was working in tight quarters.

“We looked for another space to move into, but we couldn’t find anything before our lease was up,” Wyman said.

The Columbia Falls Library Association is a voluntary organization that formed in 1995 — years before the local library became a branch of Flathead County Library system. Wyman said the association created the used bookstore roughly four years ago as a way to rotate used books through town and make reading accessible to everyone.

For years, shoppers have been able to walk away with a soft-cover book for $1 or a hardback for $2.

After rent was paid, the store’s revenue went toward small scholarships for nontraditional students at Flathead Valley Community College to buy textbooks or toward reading programs throughout the community.

In 2015, the nonprofit donated more than 14,000 books throughout the valley. Some of the donations included health and wellness books that went to the Flathead City-County Health Department, while children’s books went to places such as the food bank or into schools.

“This really has been a community place,” Wyman said. “The volunteers all joke we pay to work here because we’ve been consistent customers, too — it’s a really cool treasure hunt every day in here.”

On Friday afternoon a few local patrons walked through the store and packed books into grocery bags.

Mary Jo Jones said she and her husband had been regulars in the store since it opened. An hour into their last hunt at the bookstore they were on their second bag of books.

“I’m into suspense and I have a pile of books stacked at home that I’ve already read through,” Jones said. “We’re both retired, and as you know that’s when you pick up reading.”

Jones said she committed to shopping at the nonprofit because of its “wish list method.” She said if she was looking for a particular author, she would write it into a three-ringed binder at the shop’s front desk.

She said whether it was a week, month or several years later, she would get a call from a volunteer at the nonprofit saying her book was in.

“These are used books that you’re only paying a dollar or so for, but still they go through all that effort,” Jones said. “It’s stuff like that, that makes you know how important the community is to them.”

Wyman said she and the other bookstore volunteers aren’t ready to give up on the nonprofit. While she expects the process to take a while, she believes they’ll find another space someday.

“Columbia Falls has a lot of things happening right now,” Wyman said. “There’s enough changes and buildings that I know it’s just a matter of time before we find the right place, and I know it will be even better than before.”

The store was located at 39 Sixth St. W. in Columbia Falls.

Reporter Katheryn Houghton may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at khoughton@dailyinterlake.com.