Mill Valley's central bookshop to get operator

Nov 11, 2024

Depot Café and Bookstore in downtown Mill Valley might sublet part of its space to help operate the book shop.

The City Council voted unanimously on Nov. 4 to amend its lease with Depot Enterprises, the tenant that operates the business at 87 Throckmorton Ave. The change allows the company to sublease a portion of the space to Copperfield’s Books.

“I’ve spent a great deal of time in Copperfield’s up in Calistoga, on Lincoln Avenue, and I can tell you it’s just a fantastic place,” Councilmember Caroline Joachim said. “A fantastic place for me to lose a couple hours in, have my kids there, we’ve spent a lot of time, and I think what Copperfield’s offers is actually a really great match to what we have here in Mill Valley.”

The depot opened in 1889 as a train station serving the North Pacific Coast Railroad. As train travel declined it eventually became a bus station. In the 1970s it became Ganey’s Café and Bookstore, and then was renamed the Depot Café and Bookstore in the 1980s when new tenants took over the lease, according to a staff report by Linn Walsh, deputy director of administration for the city.

Depot Enterprises has struggled to manage the bookstore section of the depot, saying it does not have the resources of a large, specialized bookstore operator, Walsh said.

“Without access to dedicated warehouses and the purchasing power needed to efficiently stock and manage a wide variety of books, it has become difficult for them to maintain the bookstore side of the business,” the report states.

Walsh said subletting the bookstore would benefit the community because it would provide better inventory management and a better selection of books.

Vice Mayor Stephen Burke said he once took a “long hard look” at running the bookstore, and concluded that it would be difficult in a small space as a solo operator. He said Copperfield’s Books seemed like a great fit.

“I really commend the partners on their good faith effort to operate that bookstore,” Burke said. “I’m really pleased it’s being maintained as a bookstore. As vibrant as the cafe is and as much as you could do with it, if you put additional tables in there, I think retaining that in the heart of our community is really important.”

Depot Enterprises has leased the buildings since 1997. The new agreement adds two five-year extensions to the lease, and allows the tenant to sublease the 500-square-foot bookstore to Copperfield’s Books for at least three years, with an option to extend an additional three years.

Copperfield’s Books would pay 25% of the $12,000 monthly rent for the space, contribute 15% toward utilities and install separate signage.

Copperfield’s Books is an independent chain with nine stores in Marin, Sonoma and Napa counties and more than 35 years of experience, Walsh said.

The company’s focus is on engagement, and it holds events such as book clubs, educational programming and author talks, according to the staff report.

“Despite having several locations, Copperfield’s Books remains a community-focused operator rather than a formula business as their approach is tailored to each location’s unique needs,” Walsh wrote.

Naima Dean of Mill Valley said she thought the idea was excellent.

“As a public librarian, I’ve always appreciated bookstores, as well as libraries obviously, but I think the Mill Valley bookstore used to be this amazing place, a designation, and have a beautiful collection,” Dean said. “Throughout the years you’ve seen it go up and down and up and down, and this is a great opportunity to enhance the community by bringing a well established yet small book store organization, and I could just say it would be exciting to see what that change might bring.”