After serving 10 years as a community gathering and one of Auburn's favorite subcultural hubs, The Gnu's Room is closing its doors.
"It's finally reached the point where we just don't have enough revenue coming in to take care of the rent, utilities and all that, so we had to make the difficult decision to shut down," said Tina Tatum, owner of The Gnu's Room.
Tatum said she has received a lot of feedback from The Gnu's Room's frequenters and community members since announcing the closing.
She said she remembers a similar incident that occurred in 2009 when The Gnu's Room was facing closure, and a group of Auburn University graduate students fundraised approximately $10,000 to save the store.
"I was so overwhelmed with all the community support I was like, 'Well, I'm going to find a way to make this keep going,'" Tatum said.
Although their efforts were able to save The Gnu's Room in 2009, Tatum said consistent support is lacking.
"The problem is people really like us," Tatum said. "They like the idea of The Gnu's Room. They don't want us to go away and so if we get in a crisis they're willing to donate or volunteer. The problem is there is no sustainable, long-term support."
Tatum said having to close the store is heartbreaking.
"We wanted this to be a place where people felt welcome and free to express their opinions, learn from other people and experience the arts," Tatum said.
Built in 1950, the building was first home to South Side Grocery and has housed a number of businesses since its construction.
The Gnu's Room's previous owner, Bill Shearling, intended the space as only an used bookstore. It was when Tatum, The Gnu's Room's owner for the past five years, took over that it took on the life we all know and love.
Shearling, a fan of puns, created the name "Gnu's Room" by standing a dictionary on it spine and letting it fall open.
It fell open to an image of a gnu, a wildebeest. Tatum decided to keep the name when she became owner.
"I wanted to make it a community space," Tatum said. "In order to accomplish that, what did I need to do? One was to bring in events: open mic's, poetry readings, music and all kinds of things that would draw people in. Also, I wanted to put in a coffee bar, because coffee and books just seem to go hand-in-hand."
Tatum said managing The Gnu's Room has been both struggling and rewarding.
"I've met some incredible people," Tatum said. "We've given some bands their start here. There have been people who have told me, 'Oh, my gosh. The Gnu's Room was the first place I had the courage to read my poem out loud.' I feel like we've made a substantial investment in the community."
In its heyday, The Gnu's Room has seen a member of Fleetwood Mac, was a sneak peak venue for the PBS' Acclaimed Point-of-View Documentary Films and heard Madison Jones, Professor Emeritus at Auburn, give a reading.
"Anytime somebody approached me with an idea it's rare that I said no," Tatum said. "We tried to figure out a way to make it, because it might not have been my particular interest, but it was for the community."
Tatum said they hope to stay open through the end of July. Currently, all books in the store are on sale for half-off of the ticket price.
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