The planned coffee shop at the Wescott Library isn't under construction just yet. But when the java starts flowing in Eagan, perhaps someone should hang a sign that says, "This coffee brought to you by books."
After all, the sale of used books by the Friends of the Wescott Library will have paid for much of the project.
The group recently donated $20,000 toward the coffee shop, on top of about $10,000 they had previously committed.
"It's a very substantial donation," said Ken Behringer, the Dakota County library director. "This and prior donations that the friends have made to the project should be enough to cover expenses."
The total cost of the coffee shop -- to be named Dewey's Cafe in a nod to the Dewey Decimal System -- is not a fixed number just yet. The county is waiting for plan approval from the state Department of Health before the construction contract can go out for bids.
"It has been a long time coming," said Darcy Schatz, a member of the Friends of Wescott Library board and book sale organizer. "Another couple months, another couple weeks, that doesn't faze me at all."
She said support for the coffee shop project, among members of the friends group and the general public, is still strong.
"Having the coffee shop in there is kind of a natural fit for what people want to do," she said. "A lot of people read in coffee shops."
