ROCHESTER, N.Y.—State St. Book Mart had been a staple of downtown Rochester for more than 40 years—and it couldn't have had a more prime location: directly between City Hall and the FBI's Rochester offices ... which might explain why it had seen several arrests, police raids, obscenity charges and zoning battles over the years.
The store was opened in 1972 by Dominic Zicari Sr., father of former adult movie director Rob Zicari, aka Rob Black. The elder Zicari ran the store with another son, Dominic Jr., until it closed last month and the father moved to Florida with his wife.
The store, with its big sign reading "Your One Stop Adult Shop," was a magnet for attention in downtown, since it was the last of its kind, having been grandfathered in when the local city council passed a zoning ordinance several years ago prohibiting adult businesses to open in the area. The four-story building, which reportedly sold for $135,000, will be the site of an upscale restaurant.
In what might have been a portent of things to come, Zicari Sr. was arrested in 1987 by the Los Angeles County Vice Squad for "pandering," because he had allegedly financed an early porn parody, Backside to the Future, starring some of the hotter actresses of the day, including Tammi White, Candie Evens and Erica Boyer, and featuring a full-cast orgy and a DeLorean. The film was released through Zane Entertainment Group, which was owned by Dominic's brother Chuck. Zicari had also been busted for selling obscene material—the store had both DVDs and arcade booths, as well as sex toys—and tax evasion.
But although there had been no raids or arrests at Book Mart for more than a decade, according to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, many of the store's neighbors won't miss it.
"Put it this way, nobody was sad to see them go," said Chris Staffieri of The Pizza Stop, located a few doors away. "A lot of shady stuff went on there."
"It was kind of a rough spot, like working at the bus station," admitted Nikki Monahan, the store's last clerk, who still works for the Zicaris at another adult store they own in Wayne County. "I considered getting a pistol permit."
Iin his story, Democrat and Chronicle writer David Andreatta notes, "in its later years, Book Mart was more tolerated than target. When it closed, the shop hadn't been the scene of a crime or cited as a nuisance for at least 10 years."
"It definitely had its own vibe," Monahan told him. "Some of the customers had been coming there forever."
(h/t to Williams Dobbs for the tip)
