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# Waiting to exhale at Barnes & Noble
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/waiting-to-exhale-at-barnes-noble-editor/
- Published: 2004-06-30T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T04:40:58.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Opinion, Promenade, #archive-import, Homeless

*By Jean McNeil Wyner Santa Monica*

(This letter was originally addressed to Jack Kelleher, vice-president of store operations at Barnes & Noble).

My husband and I are frequent shoppers at your Barnes & Noble store on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica.

Your store management abruptly closed the third floor bathrooms to the public in the latter part of March 2004\. When we asked the front desk why the bathrooms were closed they stated, “the homeless were making a mess.” They weren’t even polite when they made their statement.

I can’t even complain to the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce because Barnes & Noble has never seen fit to become a part of this community by joining the chamber and supporting other businesses in the community.

The Third Street Promenade Barnes & Noble is one of your top 10 producing bookstores in the country. That means you are taking oodles of money out of our community. What have you given to our community? Now, you choose to close your bathrooms to the public.

I have e-mailed the Santa Monica City Council, the city manager, the editor of the Santa Monica Daily Press, the executive director of the Bayside District Corp. and the president and CEO of the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce.

The City of Santa Monica is a very close community — there are many community activists. I am one of them. My husband and I told your front desk at Barnes & Noble we would not be using your bookstore until those bathrooms are opened again. It has been three months and the bathrooms haven’t been opened to consumers who purchase books at your bookstore.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 30, 2004.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/063004.pdf?ref=smdp.com)