Borders Officially Closes for Good

After more than a month of liqudation, the closed for good on Thursday, ending 12 years of business and forcing about 40 people to find new jobs.

"It's a shame," said Alice Mascone of Johnston, who thought there might still be deals to be had at the store Thursday afternoon. Instead, she was greeted by a sign stating the store was sold out and open only for fixture sales.

"I'll miss coming here," Mascone said. "As someone who loves to browse books on the shelves, I'm afraid there might be no bookstores anywhere soon enough."

The Borders had been doing a brisk business once it was announced the entire chain would close forever. It was one of about 400 remaining Borders Bookstore locations around the country that remained open after being when the failed bookseller filed for bankruptcy in February and began shutting down locations in March. But the liquidator soon announced that even those locations would be closed.

For Cranstonian John Sullivan, closing the store will make him feel just a little older.

Sullivan, 24, has been going to Borders about once a week.

“I’ve been going here since I was a kid,” he said. “It’s the only bookstore in Cranston outside of the libraries. If you want to read, there isn’t much.”

The Wilder Companies, which manages the shopping center, are “saddened” the chain is closing, but “remains committed to the ongoing redevelopment of Garden City Center,” said Janice Pascone, marketing director for Garden City Center.

The disappearance of Borders continues a trend of vacancies in the southern half of the shopping center. The Wilder Companies have indicated they are planning on significant long-term redevelopment of the area. The company has been very successful in the northern side of the center with a succession of notable grand openings in recent months. Of them, two were a coup for the Wilder Companies: , which opened last week and , which opened in February, are exclusive to the region and draw in customers from outside Cranston.

“We will continue keeping the shopping center experience contemporary and building on the recent additions of Anthropologie, Pinkberry, , and the relocation/expansion of Destination Maternity,” Pascone said. “We look forward to announcing additional new retailers to the shopping center.“

Borders officials said the company just could not survive the rapidly changing retail book business, the e-reader revolution and the recession.

"We were all working hard towards a different outcome, but the headwinds we have been facing for quite some time," said Borders Group President Mike Edwards, "have brought us to where we are now."

The Cranston store employed about 30 people. The closure will result in a loss of about $19,000 in tangible tax revnue for the city, according to reports.