Coffee, Tea, and Books at Westgate

Sweetwaters, the cafe that originated in 1993 in Ann Arbor, spread to Ypsilanti, and is coming soon to Canton, is opening a store in the newly expanded Ann Arbor District Library Westgate Branch. They’ll hold a joint opening on September 6.

Parker says the collaboration is part of a trend among public libraries around the country that began about a decade ago. Last year, the library issued a request for proposals that envisioned a cafe that would sublease much of the floor space of the former library branch, to be designed and built in collaboration with the library renovations. Parker says Sweetwaters submitted the only complete response, and “AADL was thrilled to receive it.”

During the build-out, Parker says, the two organizations compared expectations and worked to understand each other’s business. She says that Sweetwaters owners Lisa and Wei Bee have been wonderful partners, and the library and Sweetwaters are already planning to conduct collaborative marketing, programming, and events.

The new Westgate Branch and cafe are four times the size of the previous West Branch. The expanded library has fiction and nonfiction sections, a teen area, a children’s area, a computer lab, tables with plugs for electronics, an AV area with CDs and DVDs, four quiet rooms for small meetings, two small conference spaces, a large meeting room, and a reading room that includes a working fireplace with a cultured stone face. Sweetwaters has a few tables and chairs in its space, and the library has lots of tables and chairs in the area next to the cafe. Patrons will be allowed to bring library books into Sweetwaters and refreshments from Sweetwaters into the library.

Parker says they’ll consider extending the branch’s hours once it’s open, but for now, they’re “going to take a wait and see approach.” Lisa Bee adds that once the cafe is up and running, they will explore the possibility of patio seating in the Westgate courtyard–Sweetwaters has its own front door there. The library and cafe share a new rear entrance onto the large parking lot behind the building, so there’s plenty of parking for library and cafe patrons.

Bee says the cafe will carry the same products as their other locations until they learn what library customers want. Since the cafe is located across from the children’s section, she expects it will be more family oriented and that they’ll be making changes to address children’s tastes–though she hastens to stress that they will still focus on healthy foods.

Bee says Sweetwaters tries to stand out for its warm atmosphere, global inspiration (including teas from around the world), and products made in house with “real food” as opposed to concentrates or powder bases. Parker says the AADL cafe will also feature a library-themed coffee.

For many children, this may be their first experience in a coffee shop, and Bee wants the cafe to be accessible and comfortable for them. But she also hopes that Westgate customers will stop by to relax after shopping.

Sweetwaters has both corporate-owned and franchise locations; this one is corporate. Other corporate locations are the original cafe on Washington St. and the Ypsilanti cafe across from the water tower. The new cafe in Canton is a franchise, as are the Ann Arbor cafes in Kerrytown, at Plymouth and Green, and on Liberty.

Sweetwaters Cafe, 2503 Jackson Ave. (Westgate). 222-6412. Mon.-Thurs 6 a.m.-9:30 p.m., Fri. 6 a.m.-10 p.m., Sat. 7 a.m.-10 p.m., Sun. 8 a.m.-8 p.m sweetwaterscafe.com