4:23 pm today

Christchurch bookstore facing 40% rent hike

From Checkpoint, 4:23 pm today

A Christchurch bookstore could be facing it's final chapter with rising costs and changing tastes. Steadfast books on Ferry Road in Woolston is facing a 40% rent hike and that could mean its forced to close in November when the lease is up for renewal. Owner Heath Ling made the news when he went all guerilla gardener on it and transformed a dreary median strip near his shop into a flower patch. His shop has also been a diamond in the rough, but now he's struggling to keep it alive. Ling spoke to Lisa Owen.