Front Porch Coffee House Builds Community Presence As COVID-19 Restrictions Lift

As California governor Gavin Newsom loosens COVID-19 restrictions, such as the recently-lifted mask mandate, many businesses and communities are able to return to what they once were pre-pandemic.

Dominique Floyd is the associate director of Front Porch, a non-profit coffee shop and community hub for students of Cal Poly and Cuesta College. Front Porch serves free coffee everyday and hosts free dinner on Wednesday nights for students.

“I mean I think we hope to get back to longer hours, this year we’re kinda just open [9 a.m. to 5 p.m.] as we rebuild our volunteer community,” Floyd said.

Students like animal science sophomore Robert De Leon use Front Porch not only as a way to get some caffeine, but also as a place to study.

“I like to come here a few times out of my week, it’s just a real nice atmosphere, and I like to study here and just get a good cup of coffee,” De Leon said.

Moving forward, Front Porch also has plans to go back to using sustainable and reusable mugs to serve coffee as opposed to the disposable cups that they use now.

Floyd said that they will “also try to monitor and do what’s best for the safety of [the] community.”