Ledyard — Just months after residents wrote comments en masse advocating for a local coffee shop, part of a Ledyard Community Facebook Forum survey on economic development, their wish may soon be granted.

Plans for an expansive, locally owned coffee shop in Gales Ferry will be taken up by the town's Planning and Zoning Commission during a hearing Thursday.

Douglas and Mitzi Meyer, along with Mitzi Meyer's son Luke Cloutier, are hoping to establish the family business at 39 Kings Highway, in a suite that was formerly occupied by a bank.

The as-yet-unnamed shop will be roughly 2,000 square feet, partly divided off into a comfortable lounge area, with remaining space containing traditional seating and tables as well as a small play area for younger children.

Overall the plans are for "clean lines" that are "warm and welcoming," Mitzi Meyer said.

The family is in negotiations to brew coffee from a local roaster that will be unique to the location, and Cloutier and the Meyers also hope to feature local musicians performing throughout the week and art and photography on the walls.

A tentative menu includes toasted sandwiches, paninis and crepes and an existing drive-thru used for the bank will be repurposed for the business.

Douglas Meyer and Cloutier have been discussing the idea of starting a family business in town for about a year, they said in a phone interview as they started renovating the space.

Luke Cloutier is the coffee lover of the family and as a high school student in town, there were few places to get coffee with his friends after school.

"There wasn't really a comfortable place to go and hang out ... there wasn't a community place unless you went (to) Stonington," said Cloutier, now 20.

After deciding on a coffee shop, Cloutier and his mom flew out to Portland, Ore., to complete a master barista course and learn the business from Northwest coffee shop consultant Oksana Fisenko of Alex Fisenko & Associates.

They were taught "about coffee beans, products, drinks ... pitfalls, very good experience from the business standpoint," Mitzi Meyer said.

Mitzi Meyer will act as the owner-operator of the shop, while Luke Cloutier will be the head barista.

Douglas Meyer, a longtime teacher in the technology department at Ledyard High School, said he will be working on the renovations. Over the summer, he and Cloutier have begun some work on the space as they await the planning and building permits to complete the rest of the renovation.

The desire for a local community coffee shop became evident when Ledyard Community Forum Facebook administrator and Town Council Chairwoman Linda Davis asked group members what small businesses they'd like to see in town; a coffee shop was among the most popular suggestions. She hosted a meeting on the results of the survey in April.

The public hearing for the coffee shop will take place at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Town Hall Annex.

n.lynch@theday.com