Family Entertainment Center is Planned for Pickerington

Family Entertainment Center is Planned for Pickerington

April 16, 2008

By Nicholas A. LaTorre, SNP Pickerington Sun-Times

For two Pickerington residents, entertainment doesn’t come in the form of antiquated bowling lanes, house shoes, vending machines and hard plastic chairs.

For Brian Stoner and Don Smith, bowling simply will be one of the means of entertainment in their center.

Thanks to an approval from the Pickerington Planning and Zoning Commission, Stoner and Smith can hope to break ground in June on their $4.5 million entertainment center at 740 Windmiller Drive. That’s a little west of state Route 256 and south of Refugee Road.

Marble fireplaces and plasma televisions will help create an atmosphere patrons will come to think of as “upscale bowling,” they said.

“Entertainment in Pickerington consists mainly of Marcus Cinemas,” Stoner said, referring to the multi-screen movie theater off state Route 256.

“A lot of Pickerington people travel to Easton (Town Center) and that’s a long drive, especially for a teenager.”

Stoner and Smith said they want their entertainment center to be the home of family reunions, post-prom gatherings and parties.

While attending a birthday party at a bowling alley with his son, Stoner said, he felt they could and should do better.

“Pickerington is a different type of environment,” Stoner said. “Don and I want what we were lacking when we were kids.”

Despite the little emphasis Stoner and Smith put on the bowling aspect of the center, the alleys will feature up-to-date scorekeeping technology.

Most alleys don’t invest in the technology because of the expense to add the new setups and infrequent repairs needed to older machines, they said.

Other than the 22 lanes, the 28,910-square-foot building will feature Nintendo Wii and X-Box lounges, a sports bar and restaurants, an outdoor patio and possibly volleyball courts.

Residents shouldn’t expect a Big Lebowski bowling experience. There will be a dress code and strict code of conduct to be enforced.

The partners said they want the center to maintain a high-class reputation.

Another convenience will be the method in which patrons would pay.

Rather than having to pay after bowling before heading to the arcade, customers can charge a tab and pay the entire bill at the end of their visit.

Not only will the center provide entertainment, but 50 to 100 jobs will be created when the doors open, Stoner and Smith said.

According to Pickerington Planning and Zoning Commission Director Lance Schultz, all Stoner and Smith need to do before they can build is submit engineering drawings and have their building permits approved.

After they’ve brought their center to Pickerington, Stoner and Smith said they will focus on building in areas such as Grove City, Lancaster and Powell.

They plan to leave the daily operations to the managers they hire.

Smith said he and Stoner use each other’s strengths to feed the project.

“It’s a great partnership,” Smith said. “Neither of us are partner driven.

“We started with four people, found out who did most of the work and we’re who’s left,” Smith said. “We complement each other’s differences very well.”

      The partners have hopes to open in December.