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46:, specializing in used books. Founded in the 1950s by George John and Erwin Just, it is now owned by Robert John, George's younger brother. The store's former main building (a former furniture warehouse) was five stories high (plus the two-story building next door and another down the block) housing somewhere from 350,000 to 600,000 volumes.
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In May 2016, it was reported that the property had been sold to
Milwaukee real estate developer Tim Gokhman. Gokhman said he would have an engineering study done to determine if the building could be saved. It was unclear what happened to the books which had been housed in the shuttered building(s).
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described it as "like a book collector’s attic, with boxes of used books lining the floor of this century-old former furniture store. But it’s more organized than it looks, with about a half-million books parceled among dozens of categories ('animal husbandry' 'theater practices and problems')". The
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ran an article in its
Business section headlined "City, businesses bemoan bookstore eyesore" which described the downtown location as "the eyesore on an otherwise attractive block.... part bookstore, part dustbin" and quoted nearby business owners as condemning the property as a blight on their
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neighborhood. The store was contrasted to the airport location, which it conceded "is one of the terminal's most popular features. The place is clean, well-lighted and attractive". The article contained speculation that owner John's motivations ranged from active perversity to "
79:, which opened in 1979. With strong aviation, history, cooking and genre fiction sections, plus rare books, it is believed to have been the world's first used book store in an airport. It holds about 60,000 volumes; in a recent
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article, it was praised for its "quirkiness", with one customer saying, "They are totally not what people think of with an airport bookstore. They are kind of funky and it is a very
Milwaukee thing."
100:" to a simple inability to perceive that clutter offends other people. In 2011, the city of Milwaukee closed down the store because of structural concerns about the building.
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In
November 2015, the city ordered John to demolish the downtown building because of unsafe structural conditions dating back to the early 20th century.
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Schultz, Blaine. "Renaissance Books Opens at
Southridge: Storied Milwaukee bookseller trades Grand Avenue for Southridge Mall"
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retail mall. In
October 2018, it was reported that the Grand Avenue branch was closing down and moving to
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described it as, "bursting at the seams with used books... easy to get lost among the mazelike shelves."
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In
November 2012, it was reported that Renaissance Books would open a branch downtown at the nearby
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of 2018 under the management of "Ink" Lowrey, a second-generation
Renaissance employee.
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Renaissance Books location in
Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport; Milwaukee, WI.
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Rommell, Rick. "Renaissance book shop moves from Grand Avenue to
Southridge"
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Casey, Maura J. "36 Hours in Milwaukee: 10 a.m. 4) BIBLIOPHILE’S DELIGHT"
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This article is about the bookstore. For the book publisher, see
282:"City moves to demolish downtown Renaissance Book Shop building"
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on the south side of Milwaukee County. The new store opened on
145:"Shabby Image Threatens to Cost Airport Bookstore Its Lease",
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Nov. 9, 2000: Holiday Lights Festival Supplement, pages 2, 6
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Frank, Nicholas. "Downtown Shops Fulfill Wish List Dream"
331:"Jake's Deli, Renaissance Books opening at Grand Avenue"
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315:"Apartment developer buys former Renaissance Book Shop"
299:"Plenty of Horne: City Goes Medieval on Renaissance"
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229:Luongo, Michael T. "Holiday Shopping on the Fly"
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265:"Renaissance Book Shop to open at Grand Avenue"
75:Renaissance operates a branch at Milwaukee's
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447:Independent bookstores of the United States
245:"City, businesses bemoan bookstore eyesore"
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215:"The Challenge of Airport Bookselling",
77:Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport
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233:Business Day section, December 11, 2012
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20:. For books from the Renaissance, see
200:"The Bookstore Arrives at Airports",
111:Other branches after downtown closure
31:Renaissance Books old downtown store
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42:originally located in downtown
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176:"Used bookstores in Milwaukee"
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348:Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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286:Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
268:Milwaukee Business Journal
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189:Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
56:Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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117:The Shops of Grand Avenue
432:Antiquarian booksellers
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22:Renaissance literature
413:Renaissance Book Shop
87:"Eyesore" controversy
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40:independent bookstore
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288:, November 23, 2015.
262:Vogel Davis, Stacy.
44:Milwaukee, Wisconsin
392:42.9478°N 87.9023°W
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304:November 15, 2015.
302:UrbanMilwaukee.com
231:The New York Times
163:The New York Times
81:The New York Times
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397:42.9478; -87.9023
368:December 11, 2018
217:Publishers Weekly
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91:In June 2011 the
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38:is a large
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131:References
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