Half Price Books in Upper Arlington reopens after yearslong closure with weekend sale
Book lovers, rejoice: Half Price Books in Upper Arlington is reopening this week after years of closure.
The store shut its doors in late 2020 to make way for Arlington Gateway, a $100 million mixed-use development in the footprint of the old bookstore's former home.
Now, the bookstore occupies a retail space in the development at 1389 W. Lane Avenue, where construction was completed in 2023. The store is kicking off its new life with a grand opening on March 15 and a weekendlong sale.
Here's what you need to know about the store's return.
When does Half Price Books reopen?
The store's grand opening will be at 10 a.m. Friday, but it had a "soft opening" on Monday and has been open all week for customers to buy and sell books, store manager Brady Schaar said.
So far, the store's return has been a "celebration" with the local community, district manager Chris Heuing said.
"We've come back from the ether and they're really excited to have us back and to return to their community," Heuing said.
Friday's grand opening will also be the start of the store's 20% off everything sale that runs all weekend. Visitors may also sign up for a $500 gift card raffle.
What's new with the store?
According to Heuring, the new store is bigger, brighter and has more natural light. It also has "the best" opening stock of any Half Price Books store Heuing has seen in his 35 years with the company.
"It's really exciting," he said.
Half Price Books now sits at the bottom of the Arlington Gateway complex with apartments right above it, a first for the store's parent company, Heuing said.
"We're kind of in their living room," he said.
Book perusers have access to free parking in the complex's seven-story parking garage with over 800 spots. The old store had a surface lot with around 40 spots, Heuing said.
What is Half Price Books?
Half Price Books is a national bookstore chain that buys and sells "everything ever printed or recorded (except yesterday's newspaper)," according to its website. Its founders, Pat Anderson and Ken Gjemre, started it in Dallas in 1972.
Now, the company has over 120 stores in 19 states, including five locations in the Columbus area.
The Upper Arlington store closed near the end of 2020 to make way for the Arlington Gateway. The bookstore's original building, along with a retail strip that ran along Lane Avenue, was demolished.
Supply chain issues and construction delays set back its re-opening, but the store's crews did a "really good" job of keeping the public informed, Heuing said.
What are Half Price Books' new hours?
The store's normal operating hours will be 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day of the week, according to its website.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Half Price Books in Upper Arlington reopens: What you need to know
