Video Library to extend hours, increase selection

After years of futile attempts to lure a major video rental chain to the area, the administration has given up and is now working to spruce up the existing facilities. And after talking with Penn and the Undergraduate Assembly, the Video Library, at 4040 Locust Street, said it will stay open for longer hours. The store had been closing each night at 10 p.m. It will now remain open until 11 p.m. on Sunday through Thursday and until midnight on Friday and Saturday nights. Tom Lussenhop, Penn's top real estate official, said the extended hours of operation were necessary. "Students were asking for it," Lussenhop said. "And the UA made a particularly effective appeal to us to help." A better video store has been a long-standing student request, and the UA has tried, along with the administration, to get a new store to campus for two years. But the video rental market has become less profitable as video on demand and the Internet has made it easier to watch movies at home, and Penn was unsuccessful in its efforts to bring a chain like Blockbuster or Hollywood Video to the area. This new proposal was submitted on October 5. The UA also asked the store to increase its stock and possibly install a PennCard reader so students could charge movies on their cards. UA Chairman and College senior Michael Bassik said Video Library plans to check out a list of videos, compiled by the UA, to add to its collection and has promised to expand its DVD collection. Bassik emphasized the importance of taking action regarding the service of video stores to the Penn community. "We have been working hard with the administration to try to attract a large video chain to campus," Bassik noted. "In the meantime, we thought it would be beneficial to work with stores already on campus in order to better serve the student body." Currently, Video Library is owned by Whit and Nancy Schilling, a husband and wife duo. Both owners met with Lussenhop and Bassik last week and agreed to address their concerns. "We felt it was a legitimate request from the community, specifically Penn's students," Whit Schilling said. "We are looking at it not from a money perspective, but it's about keeping the customers happy." And according to Lussenhop and Bassik, the Video Library is definitely an asset to the community. "Every quality neighborhood needs a decent video store," Lussenhop said. "I rent from Video Library myself." Schilling expressed his shock upon learning that students were unhappy with the current service and hours. "We as the owners were never directly asked to extend the hours and this was our first formal request," Schilling said. He also noted some past and potential problems with the hour extension. "We tried staying open later in the past, but it didn't seem to help," Schilling said. "Safety is a concern too. We are at 41st and Locust Street, and it is kind of dark and quiet in this area," Schilling said. So with these changes and maybe more, it looks like Video Library will remain the only video renting facility around. Lussenhop said there are no plans in the works for an additional video retailer. "The market is much better served by a local operator who is close to and attuned to student needs," Lussenhop said. "Video Library is that operator."