Beloved bookstore in Uptown Waterloo forced to close for months following fire [Video]

A beloved bookstore in Uptown Waterloo is bearing the brunt of some holiday misfortune.

On Dec. 10, a fire started in one of the units of the building that Old Goat Books operates out of.

It’s not the way owner Erica Nikolaus hoped to start the holidays, which is one of the store’s busiest times of the year.

“My heart sank. I immediately went to the worst case scenario, which would be either water damage or that the books had burned,” said Nikolaus.

Luckily for her, that wasn’t the case. She says nobody was injured either, but the structure of the store was damaged, as well as smoke damage to more than 20,000 books.

“Smoke and books are not a good mix,” she said.

Fire crews outside of Old Goat Books on Dec. 10, 2024. (Submitted)

Nearly two weeks after the fire, it feels like a horror story to Nikolaus. …