Once students return from Christmas vacation, they won’t have to wait much longer for the new Starbucks to open, said Rob Eiseman, a public relations representative for Starbucks.

“The store is scheduled to open up in early February,” Eiseman said.

It was announced in late August that a Starbucks was coming to Charleston even though it had been speculated months before the announcement came.

However, Eiseman said they don’t have the exact date of the opening set in stone.

“We are always reluctant to give a specific date because whenever you open new stores things can always change,” Eiseman said.

The coffee shop is part of the four-store front Griffin Plaza retail center that the Coldwell Banker Commercial Devonshire Realty of Champaign is developing.

The Griffin Plaza will also have the pizza parlor Papa Murphy’s, a major chain that is known for its “take-n-bake” style of pizza. The plaza is being developed in conjunction with a new Walgreens.

Doug Miller, manager of Jackson Avenue Coffee, said he is not worried about having a Starbucks in Charleston because he feels that his coffee shop serves a different market because they have poetry readings, live music and a more relaxed atmosphere.

Keith Bliss, the owner of Jitters & Bliss which will be right across the street from the new Starbucks, declined to comment at this time.

Bill Cozzens, a senior sociology major, said he has mixed feelings about having a Starbucks coming to Charleston.

“With the Java Beanery, Jitters & Bliss, and the Jackson Avenue Coffee I think there will be some significant competition among all of those coffee businesses,” Cozzens said. “And I think more people will go to a Starbucks for that brand familiarity that they are more accustomed to in the Chicagoland area.”

Charleston Mayor John Inyart said the city decided to bring a Starbucks to Charleston due to numerous requests from residents and students.

“I think it will be a nice addition. Obviously they’ve put together a beautiful building for that corner,” Inyart said. “People have been asking for a Starbucks for quite some time and now they are going to get one. I think it is a positive move.”