Coffee Inclusive has opened its second café, this one tucked inside UNC's CEDAR Center at 526 Cedar Avenue in Scranton, bringing the nonprofit's mission of employing people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to a new corner of the city. The shop serves specialty coffee, breakfast, lunch, fresh-baked goods and its own Inclusive Grounds coffee blend.
According to The Greater Scranton Chamber, the café has officially opened its second location at 526 Cedar Avenue in Scranton. The business is operated by PA Inclusive, which the chamber describes as a Pittston-based nonprofit organization that provides support services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Coffee Inclusive itself creates meaningful employment and training opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, including people with Down syndrome and autism, the chamber's announcement notes.
Before the café opened, the chamber's earlier report said Coffee Inclusive would open a new location at UNC's CEDAR Center, located at 526 Cedar Avenue in Scranton, in early September. As the Scranton Times-Tribune reports, representatives from PA Inclusive, Coffee Inclusive and United Neighborhood Centers of Northeastern Pennsylvania gathered at the CEDAR Center in early August as they prepared for the opening.
A Hub Already Built For Community Programs
The CEDAR Center is already home to a range of community services. The same chamber report notes that the center hosts programs including adult education, English language learning, career readiness, multicultural wellness programming and the year-round South Side Farmers Market, making Coffee Inclusive's new café a fresh addition to an already busy community space.
The Scranton opening builds on a track record set at Coffee Inclusive's original location in Pittston. When Coffee Inclusive opened its doors in Pittston in March 2023, according to The Sunday Dispatch, the business quickly found its footing. By September of that year, the Pittston business had expanded to seven-day-a-week service because customers were asking for Sunday hours, the outlet reported.
From One Coffee Shop To A Growing Mission
The Pittston café has become more than a place to grab a drink. Its space has been used for educational programs, fundraisers, cooking classes and other activities designed to bring people together, per the same Sunday Dispatch account. Interest in working at the original shop has also grown: a report from DiscoverNEPA found there is currently a waitlist of experienced baristas and coffee attendants who wish to join the team at the Pittston location.
The organization's leadership has signaled for years that expansion was part of the plan. Back in March 2023, Frank Bartoli, who serves as president and CEO of both PA Inclusive and Coffee Inclusive, said the organization saw room to grow well beyond its first storefront. We think there is a potential for us to open in at least three or four of them, maybe even five, Bartoli said at the time, referring to the organization's regional offices, according to Coffee Inclusive.
The Scranton location now stands as the second step toward that broader vision, giving the nonprofit a foothold in a new neighborhood while keeping its core purpose intact: a café counter where people with intellectual and developmental disabilities can find steady work, training and a welcoming place to serve their community.
