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RELEASED: July 7, 2005
DANVILLE, KY—A new coffeehouse is coming to Danville, thanks in part to an impromptu off-campus meeting of a Centre College course.
The proprietor of two popular area coffeehouses has signed a lease to operate a coffeehouse in the Hub-Frankel building in downtown Danville. Current plans have the establishment, which will be adjacent to the Centre College bookstore, opening in time for the beginning of the 2005-06 school year.
Jim Davis, an entrepreneur who runs Common Grounds in Lexington and Lock & Key in Georgetown, has come to an agreement with Hub-Frankel building owners Audrey and Richard Haisfield. Davis' Danville coffeehouse, to be known as the Hub Coffee House & Cafe, will feature wireless Internet access and live entertainment. It will serve coffee, Elmwood Inn teas, smoothies, salads, wraps and desserts.
Davis says he's excited to be opening a store in Danville. "I've always loved Danville, and Centre College is a great school. We look forward to being an asset to both the Danville and Centre College communities."
The mission for the Hub, says Davis, "is to be a safe place for people of all walks of life to enjoy not only great coffee and food, but also friendship and fellowship. It is our intent to make sure that you always feel welcome and appreciated."
The Hub will feature outdoor seating and long hours, staying open until midnight Friday and Saturday nights and until 10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday. It will open at 7 a.m. weekdays, 8 on Saturdays, and 9 on Sundays.
Davis says he plans to hold musical performances Thursday through Saturday, with open mike night on Thursday and live acoustic music on the weekend nights. He also hopes to explore hosting poetry slams, citing their popularity in his Lexington location. "We're packed for our Sunday evening poetry slams at Common Grounds," he says.
Davis looks forward to adapting the Hub to local needs, pointing out that one of the advantages he enjoys over chain coffee shops is that, "unlike the big boys, we reserve the right to get smarter."
Kay L. Drake, Director of Human Resources and Administrative Service at Centre, says the connection between Centre and Davis started because sociology professor Beau Weston's celebrated CentreTerm class, "The Café and Public Life," met at the Lock & Key. (An Associated Press feature on Weston's class has run on CNN, MTV.com, and in more than a hundred print publications.) Drake decided to take a look herself, and dropped in on Lock & Key, which is located in the former Georgetown National Bank. Drake was impressed by what she saw. "There was a good mix in there of people from town and Georgetown College students working on their laptops. I hope [Davis] will recreate that mix here in Danville."
The Centre College bookstore will continue to be managed by the Follett Corporation.
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Founded in 1819, Centre College is ranked among the U.S. News top 50 national liberal arts colleges. Centre alumni, known for their nation-leading loyalty in annual financial support, include two U.S. vice presidents and two Supreme Court justices. For more, visit http://www.centre.edu/web/elevatorspeech/
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