A change.org petition to bring a Barnes & Noble location back to the Bronx has garnered more than 4,100 signatures over the past week, the Bronx Times reported.
B&N's location at the Bay Plaza Mall closed in 2016, leaving the Bronx as the only New York City borough without a B&N store and, at the time, without a general bookstore at all. Following a passionate community response, "organizers behind the reopening said that Barnes & Noble officials promised a reopening 36 months after its 2016 closure."
The bookstore has yet to reopen, however, and Bronx residents Jaeydon McBayne and Hadiyah Braithwaite felt compelled to launch the petition. On the change.org page they wrote: "The lack of an accessible place for Bronx residents to acquire a wide range of novels, textbooks, test prep guides, and children’s books can make it more difficult for the community to uplift and inspire the next generation of children to reach such heights.”
Sam Shalem, chairman and CEO of Prestige Properties, which owns the Plaza Shopping Center, told the Bronx Times that although B&N is still on the lease, there have not been any conversations about reopening a store there. A B&N spokesperson, meanwhile, said there is "strong motivation" to open a store in the Bronx and they are currently canvassing for suggestions for potential locations.