The cafe in the Richland Public Library has closed, though the cafe’s other two locations remain open. 

Now the library is looking for a new user for the space in its bright, window-lined lobby area.

Caterpillar Cafe’s last day in the library was Jan. 31. 

Primarily based out of the Adventures Underground bookstore in Richland’s Uptown Shopping Center, Caterpillar Cafe also runs a location at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory for employees. It opened the library cafe in spring 2024. 

“We have loved being at the library – the patrons and library staff have all been great, and we appreciate the opportunity from the city,” said Amanda Divine, the cafe’s owner, in an email to the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business. “It just wasn’t quite busy enough for us consistently and we just couldn’t make it work (staffing and ingredient/supply costs, etc.).”

Library Manager Chris Nulph said that it’s difficult to operate a cafe in the library space without a drive-thru and during library hours – starting at 9 a.m. Monday through Thursdays and later on other days – the cafe missed the before-work hours critical to many coffee shops. 

That’s part of the reason why, after Caterpillar Cafe’s departure, the library is looking to find a group focused on building job skills to take over the cafe. The cafe function would be the same, but would help get people into the workforce and build community in a way that complements the library.

While the library has helped give cafes a start in the past – including Novel Coffee, which began in the library and is now at 950 George Washington Way – Nulph said that the library is looking for a more long-term solution. 

He said the library is in contact with a few different groups and hopes to have some sort of plan by mid-year. 

As for the Caterpillar Cafe, Nulph said “They’ve certainly been a great partner, and they’ll continue to partner with us on library programs and the summer reading program.”