Last week’s storm has passed, but issues linger with several businesses in the Mission.
Medicine for Nightmares, a bookstore at 24th Street and Treat Avenue, is having a “slightly soggy book sale” following last Friday’s flooding.
Water that came in through a leaky skylight damaged “a huge amount of our inventory,” said co-owner Josiah Luis Alderete. Alderete and around a dozen supporters from the “bookstore family” — patrons who consider the store home — threw away the books that were too damaged to save, and left the rest of the wet books at the rear of the store.
That includes hundreds of titles on gender studies, environmental issues, and Asian-American and Pacific Islander history, among many others, available to those willing to pay what they can.
Possessing a soggy book isn’t that strange, the bookstore says on Instagram. “Remember Roberto Bolaño used to take his books in the shower with him,” the post read, referencing the famed Chilean novelist. Just put the book in the sun or bake it in the oven for two minutes, the bookstore adds.
Similarly, Adobe Books & Arts Cooperative, which is located two blocks away at Shotwell and 24th streets, is offering a 50 percent discount on all of its books, although some are now warped and damp. The discount will last until Dec. 1, with some books at the store available at $1, $4 or $6 right now.
On Friday, Nov. 22, around noon, “I got a call from one of the guys who was working and he said, ‘Oh, you know, there’s a little leak going on.’ And all of a sudden, ‘Wait, it’s getting bigger! It’s getting bigger! It’s getting bigger!” said volunteer Johnny Fellman.
Water just kept pouring through from the roof.
Later in the afternoon, a plumber cut the store’s ceiling open and found a blocked drain, but the water had already flooded multiple rooms. Fellman turned off the power when he saw water coming out of the light sockets.
The store ended up closing until Monday. They lost some books. Meanwhile, the regular books on the shelves started to curl after being warped by the moisture in the air.
“We were bailing out probably almost 100 gallons of water,” said Fellman. “We’re having a big sale to try to get some money together.”
For the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts at 2868 Mission St. near 25th St., flooding from last Thursday night will likely linger into the new year.
Like many buildings on the block, the MCCLA building shares a combined drain with the city, according to Dr. Martina Ayala, executive director of the center. The storm drain didn’t have its lid on when the storm came and was soon filled with trash, said Ayala, who believes it’s the city’s responsibility to make sure lids are on the drains and avoid the accumulated trash.
The storm drain backed up into the center’s drain, and black water filled the building’s first floor. “In addition to a leak coming out of the electrical closet … we saw gushes of water coming out” of the restroom, said Ayala. “That’s when it went from urgent to an emergency because all of the first-floor facilities were flooded.”
Plumbers have emptied out at least four trash cans filled with water, and are still sucking water out, according to Ayala. And anything the black water touched has to be replaced to avoid mold, said Ayala. That means knocking down walls and redoing the floors.
The center is working to maintain scheduled holiday programming, and plans to complete all the construction work during its end-of-year break.
While the exact cost of the flooding is still awaiting testing results, Ayala knows it will be astronomical. “MCCLA was already facing cash flow issues” before the flooding, she said.
The center has also planned to move from its longtime home at 25th and Mission streets so that the building can be renovated and updated.
The center has launched a $80,000 fundraising campaign to help with the repair costs. Those interested in donating can click here or here or text “MCCLA” to 53-555.
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