Screenshot via @bncolonialpalms/Instagram
Audio By Carbonatix
The closure of a local institution is imminent in Southwest Miami, as Barnes & Noble West Kendall prepares to shut its doors in three weeks, on Wednesday, September 24. In March, the Miami Herald reported the store would be replaced by a Rooms to Go, inciting fears that the area would become a literary desert. As of today, locals can put those concerns to rest. A new store, Barnes & Noble Colonial Palms Plaza, opened today, with yet another store set to open nearby next month.
According to a company statement, the new Colonial Palms Plaza shop, located at 13605 S. Dixie Hwy., offers “close to 15,000 square feet of books, toys, games, magazines, gift items, and more.” The store hosted a ribbon-cutting this morning, with a visit from the popular children’s book character Corduroy. The shop is also offering grand opening specials, including free hot or iced coffees for premium members and $5 copies of Katie Cicatelli-Kuc’s Everything Nice with the purchase of any cafe item.
Luz María Doria, author of ¿Cuánto te pesa lo que te pasa? assisted with the ribbon cutting, and the store has already announced special events this month, including several author meet-and-greets and children’s programming.
The opening comes as Miami experiences a new bookstore boom, including both chains and indies. Roots Bookstore and Market opened in Liberty City on Juneteenth, and last year, Posman and Best of Miami winner Quade Books opened in downtown Miami and Aventura, respectively.
More bookstore openings are coming. Romance shop Steamy Lit, which has brick-and-mortars in Tampa and Deerfield Beach, is opening a new location in Miami Springs this winter. Southwest Miami will get another new Barnes & Noble store next month when the company opens its Town & Country location on Wednesday, October 15.
