Theatre District for Sale, Holiday Business Up, Copperfield's Adds e-Books

Basin Street Properties will put three of its Theatre District properties on the market to see if there are any willing buyers.

The Waterfront Apartments, Theatre Square and Basin Street Landing, all properties with apartment components, will be going on the market, according to Paul Andronico, Basin Street’s general counsel. Basin Street may not sell any properties, though, as it tests the value of each one.

“The buildings are for sale,” said Andronico. Apartments are one of the few commercial real estate sectors that have held their price during the economic downturn, according to Andronico.

Waterfront Apartments are loft-style apartments that sit on the river, east of D Street; Theatre Square is on the block in the middle of C, D and Second streets and Petaluma Blvd; and Basin Street Landing is the riverfront home of brewery Graffiti. There are 189 apartments, 37,000 square feet of retail space and about 90,000 square feet of office space in those buildings.

The preference is to sell them together, but Basin Street may part with each one individually for the right offer.
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Downtown retail stores saw increased sales and heavy foot traffic, according to several businesses interviewed by Patch.

“We were up from last year,” said Vine and Barrel owner Jason Jenkins. “We, [Vine and Barrel], never make a lot of sales after Christmas, but this year we did.”

Jenkins cited his wine store’s membership, up to 106 after the holidays, as a sign of improving conditions for economic businesses. That number usually hovers closer to 90.

Even Petaluma’s famed year-round Christmas store, Marisa’s Fantasia, saw increases, with sales up 7 to 8 percent, according to Manager Paul Gravesen.

“People want that hometown feel [when they shop at the holidays],” said Gravesen. “You don’t get that online. We had a lot of foot traffic this year.”

Copperfield's Books saw flat sales compared to 2010, and that's considered an improvement for the much maligned book sales industry.

“Christmas started off slow, but ended with a bang,” said Petaluma store Manager Matt Stone. “The community has always been good to us. In 2012, we’re off to a good start. It’s been a busy four days.”

Without discussing figures, Stone credited sales for children’s books as playing a big factor for the store. That segment of the store has its best holiday season and best year in 2011.

“We’re getting a good reputation as a kids' book store,” said Stone.

Other stores echoed the upbeat sentiment.

“We had a good season,” said an employee of Paperwhite, who would only identify herself as Lisa. “It’s hard to say or pinpoint a reason why, but it was just a good year.”

The store saw 20 percent increase in sales compared to 2010, mainly in its custom-print invitations and work for other businesses, and some boost from online sales.
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Copperfields has begun selling eBooks--books used on an e-reader device like the iPad, iPhone or Android device.

“It was a playing field we couldn’t play on before,” said Coppefield's Marketing Director Vicki DeArmon. “We couldn’t compete in this arena before, and now we can.”

Started in October, the program is still in the early stages, and it's hard to tell how successful selling books on the e-reader app, which is run through Google, has been. The book store will know more by the end of the year, but early feedback indicates success for the North Bay bookseller.  

There is no app for the Kindle, which sells Amazon products, expected anytime soon.

Proceeds for book sales go directly to Copperfield's, rather than through Apple or Amazon. People can find instructions on downloading the app by going through Copperfield's website.