OFF: Has this ever happened to you?

[ANDREW GARIBALDI]

jeez- hope they had insurance!!!!!
Andy Garibaldi
----- Original Message -----
From: "K Henderson" <henderson.120 at OSU.EDU>
To: <BOC-L at LISTSERV.SPC.EDU>
Sent: Tuesday, June 05, 2001 4:05 PM
Subject: OFF: Has this ever happened to you?


> 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.