The community alongside Monroe Road is continuing to thrive as new businesses like Sprint, Hawthorne’s Pizza, and Wingstop create a home in the shopping center across from East Meck. They draw an influx of high school customers due to the convenience of location. On a normal day, you’ll find a group of students from East crossing the street to either head in to work or purchase a tasty snack. All of the surrounding food spots are perfect for a drop in and quick conversation with friends but not to stay and study.

However, that’s about to change. A Starbucks is currently being constructed behind the new Aldi’s less than a mile from East. Many consider Starbucks the perfect place to snack and study without feeling the need to leave after an hour. Because of this, many students are excited for its opening.

“I think it’ll be a convenient place for students to hang out and get work done, I wish we had one earlier” said senior, Aleaha King.

The Starbucks is set to open within the next month.