A kaleidoscope of technicolor pink, blue and green lights glint off the coffee pots and the front pastry display case. The bass of Kari Faux’s “Lowkey” bumps alongside the sounds of customers’ chatter. Watercolor paint is splashed across old cupboard doors, their history revealed by the cracked texture and faded hues.

Dozens of students, faculty and community members crowd in the basement of Hendricks Chapel as the three co-managers of People’s Place — Baylee Wright, Hayley Bermel and Ciara Bethel — weave through to refill pastry samples.

“This,” Bermel said, laughing alongside Wright, “is chaotic energy.”

Today marks a new chapter in the 48-year legacy of People’s Place at Syracuse University, as the cafe celebrated its newly renovated kitchen space and menu with a reopening celebration. The event, which started at 2 p.m., featured free small drinks from the coffee shop, food samples from Brooklyn Pickle and Geddes Bakery, giveaways and music spun by WERW DJs and performances by student artists Charlie Burg and Georgie Olmeda.

People’s Place served free samples of their own coffee, as well as pastries and sandwiches courtesy of Brooklyn Pickle and Geddes Bakery on Friday afternoon. Haley Robertson | Feature Editor

Luke Stirpe, a sophomore in Newhouse, performed magic tricks throughout the event and said it was his first time visiting the coffee shop.

“I was expecting more chill, coffee shop vibes, but this — this is a party,” he said with a smile.

Visitors clustered in the nooks of Hendricks and lined the basement’s pews as Hendricks employees, including Dean Brian Konkol and Director Syeisha Byrd, mingled with students.

The renovations, completed over winter break, include new refrigerators and cabinet space, an expanded food menu as well as merchandise like coffee mugs and stickers for purchase. Wright said the renovations provide an opportunity for the not-for-profit coffee shop to endure long after she graduates this May.

The new additions to the cafe include new refrigerators and expanded cabinet space. The cafe has also revamped their menu offerings. Haley Robertson | Feature Editor

“We had to redo a lot of the structures we had in here because it was getting pretty old,” she said. “But there were some things that we had to make sure that we still had the People’s Place vibe going — we wanted to make sure it was still People’s Place, but also a way to expand into the SU community.”

One of the enduring components of the cafe’s nearly 50-year legacy, Wright said, is the intimacy it builds with its customers. People’s Place, she said, has thrived not only off of its inexpensive prices and convenient, central location on campus, but the relationship it builds with its customers.

“It’s a fun little quirky place, so it’s important to keep that quirkiness,” added Sarah Butts, a People’s Place employee. “Keeping the flavor and personality of People’s Place was really important to us. We didn’t want to be gentrified, and we didn’t want to look like every other coffee shop, because we’re not like every other coffee shop.”

Published on February 8, 2019 at 3:58 pm

Contact Kelsey: katho101@syr.edu | @writtenbykelsey