Colleen Kasenic has never owned a business before.
But she is planning to give it a go with West View Brew, a new coffee shop set to open at 442 Perry Highway in West View.
After more than 30 years working at a travel company, Kasenic said she wants to try out the coffee business, though she admits to not knowing much about the drink.
Kasenic said renovations of the building that will house the shop, in the borough’s main business district across from the West View Hub, have taken more than a year and required the replacement of essentially all the utilities. In the end, she said it will be a “beautiful space.”
A resident of West View for more than 20 years, Kasenic said she plans to serve pastries, soups, juices, tea — and coffee. On some of the building’s wall space, she said she hopes to offer an area for local vendors to sell “knick-knacks.”
Her goal, she said, is to offer residents a “fun” place to congregate.
“I just want to make a space where people can come here and relax and enjoy, a place to meet up in a central point in West View,” she said.
Now, Kasenic said she is looking for staff. She said she hopes to find a good manager to bear some of the burden of the new small business and several baristas experienced with coffee equipment and customer service.
The community’s reaction, she said, has been positive so far, and she expects the space to be busy.
Beth Schellhaas, owner of nearby West View Floral Shoppe, said she has seen the building West View Brew will occupy serve many roles over the years, including as a butcher shop and a theater. But the owner of the 49-year-old floral shop said she is looking forward to meeting her new neighbor.
“We’re always happy to have a new business in the borough,” Schellhaas said. “Everyone is so excited.”
For the borough’s part, Public Works coordinator Rich Rapp said he looks forward to trying the coffee. He said the borough is always happy to see new businesses on Perry Highway.
Rapp said he hopes West View’s ongoing “streetscape” project, a safety and beautification initiative that will rework the borough’s main drag, will draw even more businesses to West View’s 1 square mile.
West View Brew, Kasenic said, should open its doors to customers sometime in late February.
