Thanks to community support, Paperback Exchange in Minneapolis to reopen in new spot after flood

A Minneapolis bookstore has found a new home after devastating flooding closed several businesses in the area, and they didn't have to look far.More than a year after a water main break destroyed most of its inventory, Paperback Exchange is preparing to reopen in a new location just steps away from the bookstore's longtime home at 50th Street and Penn Avenue South.The beloved used bookstore was devastated in February 2025, when a water main break flooded the business, destroying roughly 100,000 books and forcing it to close.Owner Andrew Hersey said insurance covered only a fraction of the losses. With the city saying it is not liable, Hersey relied on fundraising efforts and sales at book fairs to keep the business alive.Now, 20 months later, Paperback Exchange has found a new home inside a nearby house, located roughly 100 feet from the storefront it occupied for decades."We knew we wanted to keep the store in the neighborhood," Hersey said. "Being so close, we couldn't really ask for