OFF: Has this ever happened to you?

[K Henderson]

Hi Folks...

June 4th, 2001...a date that will live in infamy!

Without Used Kids here in town, there's no reason to go on living!  :(
If Amoeba ever goes up in flames too, that's it!  I moving to Europe!  :)

Grakkl (FAA)

Landmark music store burns; 70,000 titles lost

Used Kids Records opened in 1986 in a basement storefront

Tuesday, June 5, 2001
Alice Thomas
Columbus Dispatch Higher Education Reporter

A pile of charred music drew a crowd of scavengers and mourners to the
sidewalk outside Used Kids Records yesterday after an early-morning fire.

The scene was a fitting tribute to a store whose unique inventory attracted
bargain-hunting college students and serious collectors for 15 years.

"It's a family is what it is -- a really open family of people who care about
music," said Keith Hanson, an English major at Ohio State University. "You
hear what people are saying when they see this. They act like it's a death
-- and it is."

Since it opened in 1986 in a basement storefront at 1992 N. High St., Used
Kids had become a hard-to-see landmark in an era when independent businesses
along the busy street are dwindling.

Now, its future is uncertain.

A short in the ceiling wiring at the adjacent Used Kids Annex caught fire
about 2:45 a.m., said Kelly McGuire, spokeswoman for the Columbus Division
of Fire.

"The main thing right now is the loss of income," co-owner Dan Dow said.
"We're looking into maybe relocating temporarily."

Gone are tens of thousands of records and CDs -- and a favorite hangout of
music lovers.

Hanson, who lives next door in an apartment above Buckeye Donuts, said he
dropped into Used Kids about five times a week to look for music and chat
with friends.

That's not unusual. The store survived because of its regulars, who'd stop in
to get money or trade credit for CDs and check out ever-changing offerings.

"It's a total downer," OSU freshman Conor McCarthy said as he walked past
the pile. "They've also got a lot of CDs that other places don't have, like
imports."

But the feeling wasn't all gloom and doom. Store manager Ron House had a
quick, sarcastic answer for a group of curiosity-seekers who stopped to ask
what had happened.

"There was this hard-core band down here and they were really (expletive)
hot," House said with a smile. "They burned the place down!"

Used Kids' patrons were accustomed to a healthy dose of punk rock-style
cynicism. In the wake of recent riotous parties in the off-campus area, the
store advertised discounts to customers who brought in plastic
"knee-knocker" pellets fired by police.

But it also had a serious side: Used Kids had a reputation among record
collectors who bought and sold rare albums and 45s at the store and, in
recent years, via the Internet.

Included among the estimated 70,000 CDs and records lost were rarities such
as a John Lennon/Yoko Ono album that came with a special calendar, as well
as valuable rock-art posters.

Also destroyed was a collection of about 1,000 jazz records bought last
week, employee Tom Shannon said.

"The amount of vinyl coming off the streets -- it shrinks every year," Shannon
said. "It's just less and less common."

Estimating the value of the loss is difficult, he said.

"It takes a long, long time just to build up an inventory of stuff."

Since Campus Partners began its effort to revitalize the area, many stores
along High Street -- particularly south of Used Kids -- have disappeared.

Campus Partners isn't interested in the Used Kids property, said Terry
Foegler, president of the nonprofit group.

The structure can be saved, but other businesses in the building -- the Pita Pit
and the Great Wall Chinese restaurant -- also were damaged.

McGuire said the total damage to the building is estimated at $133,000.