FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Locally owned bookstore Judging By the Cover, has officially made its move to the Tower District, bringing with it a community that has been supporting it for the past three years.

The move to the Tower District from Fresno’s Chinatown comes as a direct result of a partnership between the bookstore and the South Valley Community Land Trust.

“We originally wanted to open in the Tower District, and it was really cost-prohibitive,” Judging By the Cover Bookstore co-owner Ashley Mireles Guerrero said. “Because they have this space now, we’re able to afford to open a retail space.”

In March, Ashley and her partner Carlos Mireles Guerrero launched a GoFundMe to cover some of the costs of the move. While the community did donate in droves, Ashley says unexpected setbacks pushed the opening date at the new location back.

“There were a few really big challenges like, getting the city to approve the build itself. We had an issue with the AC early on,” Ashley said. “Our event space is still in progress because of the late approvals on construction.”

Despite the challenges, the community that has always supported the bookstore made its way to the new location for the soft opening.

“Folks are riding their bikes. They’re finding parking and still coming out and hanging out,” Carlos said.

Some customers were excited to support a local business, like Emilia Borjas.

“It’s small, it’s local, you can get to know each other’s names, you can recognize each other, you can check in,” Borjas said. “If this was, like, a Barnes and Noble… you would not get the same warmth that this is.”

For information on Judging By the Cover’s grand opening, Ashley says anyone interested should keep an eye on the bookstore’s social media linked here.