Alan Wastell, owner of Bookends Bookstore, remembers a time not so long ago when there were four bookstores within a few blocks of each other in downtown Napa.

By June 1 there may not be any. Facing falling walk-in traffic, online competition and downtown construction, Wastell said his shop will close when his lease expires at the end of May.

“Unless there’s an ‘angel’ of some sort dedicated to maintaining the presence of an independent book store downtown, this will be the end of the last indie,” Wastell wrote in an e-mail.

Original owners Thomas and Angie Pieper first opened Bookends downtown 35 years ago. In 2003, Wastell, a former employee at the Sonoma Bookends store, bought the Napa store from second owner Jerry Doherty.

Since then, online competition from merchants including amazon.com have changed the book business forever.

“There’s no way to compete with price and selection,” said Wastell.

One downtown construction project after another didn’t help. “Foot traffic is way down at this point,” he said.

Being on a closed street in Coombs Plaza has also hurt business, said Wastell.

Then, when Copperfield’s Books opened up in the Bel Aire Plaza in March 2005, “that took a little more away from us.”

Landlord George Altamura offered Wastell a new lease, but on a month-to-month basis and at a higher rate, making the offer “unattractive,” said Wastell.

“Some promising new (downtown) projects are wonderful,” said Wastell, but, he added, “You can’t get past the fact that you wander around downtown and there are a lot of empty storefronts.

“It leaves it very difficult for merchants to get a steady flow of foot traffic. It’s not a draw for locals or visitors.”

Wastell and his wife have other jobs in the wine industry.

“For me the tougher decision was the employees. Some have been there 30 years,” he said.

“As much as I would like to continue, we haven’t been earning anything from the store for a while,” said Wastell. “We can’t afford to lose any more on the business.”

News of the likely closure was “disturbing,” said former owner Thomas Pieper, 79.

“I am surprised,” he said, but, “It’s a difficult business these days.”

Pieper described Bookends as a family operation. “It was a pretty successful business. There’s no way to make a killing, but we (operated) it on a tight budget successfully. I guess a lot of the success we had we credit to some dedicated people and dedicated customers.”

Wastell said he advertised the business for sale, and had a few nibbles, but nothing serious.

“If someone really wanted to, they might catch the wave of downtown Napa turning around — I just think it’s too late for us.”

A downtown bookstore of the future could make it if they cater to tourists, said Wastell, selling gift books, fiction and “reading material that people aren’t going to compare to amazon.com.”

Beginning Monday, all Bookends inventory is 25 percent off, including new stock.