The shuttered cafe in the southwest corner of the Duane G. Meyer Library lobby will finally be removed by its parent company, Chartwells. Once known as OutTakes, the cafe served Starbucks coffee, snacks and pre-made lunches until approximately Spring 2022, when Chartwells decided to close it, citing a lack of profits.

The leadership of Meyer Library lobbied for Chartwells to reopen the cafe, but they opted not to.

“When we realized they were not going to reopen it, we asked them to remove it,” said Holly Kouns, Coordinator of Public Services. “We asked for a while for them to remove it and it wasn’t until they got a new district head that they agreed to it.”

The exact date for the removal has still not been announced, but the library anticipates needing to replace the flooring tiles beneath the space once the apparatus is cleared away. Eventually, the vision is for the site to become an additional lounge and study area. 

“If it’s not serving the community as a coffee stand, then it should serve the community as a space for furniture and seating,” Kouns said.