The first floor of the Archer Library is getting a fresh new look this semester with the main addition of a new café. 

According to Rick Ewing, VP of Facilities, construction is estimated to be completed in a month to a month and a half. The official date for construction to be complete is October 1. 

Ewing is excited with how the project is turning out and all the progress made up until now. 

“We made a lot of progress, and I’m really excited how it’s turning out,” said Ewing. 

The renovated first floor will be the new home for the Writing and Communication Center, a new virtual reality center, an IT help desk, a new circulation desk, new offices for the library staff, a general printing area, restrooms, a lounge space, and the new café.  

“The strategic plan for the library [is] to make it a student service center, so we kind of wanted a one-stop shop,” said Ewing.  

The new café towards the back of the first floor, according to Ewing, will have a bistro-type feel, and will be going with more of an “East Coast kind of café.”

The goal of the café is to bring in more of the public and was part of the plan strategically. 

The full menu, the name of the café and more information will be announced during the week of homecoming.  

The donors of the new first floor of the library are the Archers and Dwight Schar. T as these renovations to the first floor are part of the campus beautification project.