Selling St. Mark’s: Popular bookstore’s home up for grabs?

UPDATED: Friday Dec. 20, 11:30 a.m.: A listing appeared on PropertyShark for the building that houses St. Mark’s Bookshop in the East Village, owned by Cooper Union, EV Grieve reported. Robert Frischman of EVO Real Estate Group, has since told TRD that the building is not for sale. How or why the listing appeared on Property Shark is unclear.

The spot at 29 Third Avenue and Stuyvesant Street was listed in October 2012, per a tweet from Frischman cited by EV Grieve. The marketing page on the firm’s website is no longer available.

According to the listing, which was previously held by Frischman, the seller will enter into a short-term leaseback for the 27,000-square-foot building. The site holds 48 rooms plus lounge areas, and has a 192-bed capacity, according to a PDF of the listing posted by EV Grieve.

Earlier this year, St. Mark’s Bookshop raised money online to fund its lease in the face of rising rents demanded by Cooper Union, which is itself increasingly cash-strapped as operation costs rise and investment income dips. The science and art school will also be charging its undergraduates tuition for the first time in more than a century, starting in 2014 — a move that has rankled alumni, current students and newcomers. [EV Grieve] — Julie Strickland