When I arrived in Lawrence in 1997, I enjoyed visiting the Community Mercantile Co-op (popularly known as The Merc) on the corner of Ninth and Mississippi streets. Folks shared tables and engaged in friendly conversation over hot tea and coffee served in ceramic mugs in the small, low-key eating area. Staff called regulars by name and went the extra mile to meet customers’ needs. I made friends, met many local characters and felt welcomed and “at home.”

This intimacy disappeared with the move to the present premises at the corner of Ninth and Iowa in 2001. Food and beverages were located at the store’s rear, and the impersonal seating area was near the entrance beyond the cash registers. Hot food and drink, served on paper plates and cups, was often cold after waiting in long grocery lines.

In response to requests from members and increased sales, major renovations, including a new, extended dining area and deli, were undertaken in 2007. The newly designed “green cafe” opened in December.

The bright, airy space at the store’s front southwest corner has seating for 54. The light yellows, creams and light earth-tone colors are enhanced by natural light from the large windows and the subtle low-voltage supplemental lighting powered by 100 percent renewable energy sources (a combination of hydroelectric and wind-generated power). Strategically placed fresh plants and flowers add to the brightness, and work by local artists is well-displayed. In keeping with the “green design,” all eating surfaces are crafted from renewable materials, including the tabletops, which are made from Kansas sorghum stalks.

“The place smells so clean and fresh,” said Dollie Bittenbender, a retired instructor at Haskell Indian Nations University. She and her friend Joy Leslie enjoyed hot chocolate from paper cups after their shopping trip.

They like the new space.

I tried a Lucky Irish Breakfast teabag from a limited Republic of Tea selection. Barista Jordan Geiger told me it’s possible to have any tea from the wide selection of loose teas, blended locally by Annie Lin, available in the bulk section at the back of the store. Having high-quality loose tea in a paper cup didn’t appeal to me. Sula Teller, the food services director, said a new shelf is being built to house ceramic mugs and a hot water machine. It will be conveniently placed nearer the cafe entrance.

Marcia Price, whose great-grandparents were among the first settlers in Lawrence in the 1800s, was delighted to hear about the ceramic mugs.

“I consider myself a latte connoisseur, and latte just doesn’t taste right in paper cups,” she said.

Price inherited some of her ancestors’ pioneer spirit. She was part of a women’s group which could be considered the beginnings of the co-op movement in Lawrence.

“In the late ’60s and early ’70s, Molly VanHee organized us to sell and exchange eggs, milk and the excess produce from our vegetable gardens. We met in what was then a small field east of the Kansas University campus,” she said.

“I’ve been a Merc member from the very beginning,” Price added. “I think it’s important to have a place to get high-quality, locally produced food.”

As we chatted, her husband, Robert, a retired KU professor, heated his lunch in the microwave at the back of the cafe.

Hot food and beverages can become tepid when the line at the cash register is long. On several occasions, I’ve been behind five or six people paying for general merchandise, and my tea’s been cold by the time I’ve paid.

I shared this concern with Teller and general manager Jeanie Wells, and suggested having a separate register for cafe customers. They assured me they’d do their best to respond to customers’ requests and ideas.

The Community Mercantile is now a thriving business with a professional air. Sales have more than doubled since the 2001 move, and the new extended deli and dining space has an up-market, classy take-away food ambiance. The more personal and friendly atmosphere of earlier days seems to have diminished, and one hopes the Merc Board, staff and customers will continue to work hard to recover that important aspect.

Ambiance: 5

Coffee: 3

Tea: 2

Service: 2