Local community has mixed reaction to new business
By JAMES EIK
Staff Reporter
Coffee shop construction wasn't the first career choice for Cheyenne Amesbury, but it has become a second job over the past six weeks.
Amesbury traded in her espresso machine for a paintbrush as she joined family and friends who helped create Sin City Espresso, located at 13722 U.S. Highway 2 in Airway Heights. Amesbury also owns On Alert, a drive-thru coffee stand directly across the street.
With her husband, Dan, who owns Perfection Detail, Amesbury took possession of the former mini market May 1. Not wanting to pursue the construction of another drive-thru coffee stand, the entire building has been built into a walk-in café.
Hours were spent cleaning, painting and changing the front area of the building into its current state. The shop's transformation is the result of countless hours of work from a large personal network mainly including family, friends, longtime customers and even their dog, Griz.
“We don't do construction for a living,” Amesbury said. “We make coffee and detail cars.”
Sin City Espresso will use Uccello's Coffee, a Spokane-based roaster, to create their drinks. Although Amesbury expects to use some of the items available at On Alert, Vegas-themed drinks are already being crafted. One such item, the “High Roller,” will use four shots of white coffee, four shots of black coffee, mixed with flavoring, topped off with half and half.
The racy silhouette on the sign out front has drawn some criticism for the shop, and raised concerns about its operation. Members of the Airway Heights City Council addressed some citizens' concerns at its June 6 meeting.
“I also received several calls on the project that is currently under construction, Sin City Espresso,” City Manager Albert Tripp said. “I just wanted to assure the public as well as the council that the current proposal or project does meet city standards as it relates to that commercial cost.”
Tripp also noted that Airway Heights has adult entertainment standards in place and that the city will watch the project.
Criticism reached the shop's front door when one citizen walked inside screaming as Amesbury painted. Other comments have reached the Internet in the form of posts on the espresso shop's Facebook page.
Despite the criticism, Amesbury has moved forward in the construction.
“Things like that don't stress me out,” she said. “I've got bigger things to worry about, like paying my employees, buying inventory and doing my husband's laundry.”
Continuing with the shop hasn't been without its own personal risks.
Amesbury said that her husband's automobile detailing shop lost its main account on the basis that the couple were “sinners” and encouraging husbands to cheat on their wives. The shop, she responded, is merely Vegas-themed.
A resident of the Spokane area her entire life, Amesbury began working in the coffee industry when she turned 16 years old. She purchased her first coffee stand in North Spokane five years later, and began running On Alert six years ago. Last September, she married her husband, Dan.
Despite the fast pace this year, Amesbury still enjoys the job.
“It's kind of like being a bartender, you hear everything, you know everything,” she said. “I know my customers by name, and it's almost like a family. I see these people more than I see my mom. I see these people every day.”
Despite the original opening date of June 1 passing by, Amesbury hopes to open Sin City Espresso this week.
“We keep saying ‘Just one more week, just one more week,'” she said. Numerous delays have kept the project from fully opening, but the final touches are nearly in place.
James Eik can be reached at [email protected].
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