30+ lane bowling alley, entertainment center for Lowell

[KJW]

Boys, you're not the only ones who saw potential for a "Dave and Buster's" type of "older kid" entertainment. This breaks ground in mid-September and should be complete by May.

http://www.nwarktimes.com/bcdr/News/51940/

The area's beginning to fill in...driving from Pleasant Grove past the big Christian Fellowship Church I was surprised at how much is being put in there now east of the Pleasant Grove Crossing center - there's an Auto Zone, a convenience store (going in), a bank or two.

The "fill-in" between Rogers and Lowell continues.

(BTW, speaking of "filling in" and "lighting up a dark corner". A few miles south at the Springdale I-540/Elm Springs crossing that area's fixin' to "light up" as well...there's a Value Place going in. Ever seen how bright the highway signs for those places are? )

[thewizard16]

Good. I was surprised when I moved here at the relative lack of this kind of entertainment in the area. The lack of good bowling alleys amazed me as well. I'm not big on bowling, but the one in Fayetteville is just terrible. Smaller towns than us have more and nicer alleys than we do.

[masons_dad1]

A new bowling alley will be a nice addition to the ones we already have in Bentonville and Rogers. Lowell is a great location for one since the new World Gym will be close by and there will be plenty of shopping and dining along Pleasant Grove.

[ShiggyRye]

It'd be nice for NWA to get one like Fort Smith with around 80 lanes

[nwa_479]

This is what I like to see. There's not much here in NWA like this other than Locomotion.....and Chuck E. Cheese. Hopefully there won't be any trouble with this project. Still a D&B would be nice but I'm pretty sure that's not happening anytime soon.

[KJW]

FWIW, in today's Benton County Record there's a picture of a sign at the construction site which depicts the future bowling alley. The building's boxy but colorful (as bowling alleys frequently are) with lots of stripes and diamonds on the exterior walls. Nice to see a NWA construction project that appears to actually going to be built.

[KJW]

Have ya'll SEEN this place? It's going to open in two days. On Sunday after church the parking lot was teeming with cars and vehicles, and their electronic sign's up and running at streetside.

I wonder if it's going to be NWA's answer to "Dave and Busters". (Perhaps this one could be called "Mith and Busters" )

(And with recent posts about 1) the nearby Pleasant Crossing plans, 2) the big proposed truck stop at Wagon Wheel, 2 exits south it's still going to be VEEEEEERY interesting to see what happens when Rogers, Lowell and Springdale all grow together, and when the area around the Arvest /NWA Nats ballpark gets developed.

We'll REALLY have a better idea what we've got on our hands then, and traffic-wise I hope it's not a big mess.)

[masons_dad1]

Have ya'll SEEN this place? It's going to open in two days. On Sunday after church the parking lot was teeming with cars and vehicles, and their electronic sign's up and running at streetside.

I wonder if it's going to be NWA's answer to "Dave and Busters". (Perhaps this one could be called "Mith and Busters" )

(And with recent posts about 1) the nearby Pleasant Crossing plans, 2) the big proposed truck stop at Wagon Wheel, 2 exits south it's still going to be VEEEEEERY interesting to see what happens when Rogers, Lowell and Springdale all grow together, and when the area around the Arvest /NWA Nats ballpark gets developed.

We'll REALLY have a better idea what we've got on our hands then, and traffic-wise I hope it's not a big mess.)

[comreguy]

Dave & Busters it is NOT!!! This place, Fast Lane Entertainment, will be strictly a family friendly place and nothing at all like Dave & Busters. It will be like Lokomotion with bowling instead of mini-golf, but each will have its own individual attractions. Their website is right here: www.fastlanebowl.com.

BTW, we still could use a Dave & Busters now that we have ChuckE.Cheese and Fast Lane. Don't want to leave the adults out in the cold afterall!

[jdevers]

Dave and Buster's requires a minimum of 2,000,000 people in a 30 mile trade area. Not going to happen in NWA in our lifetime.

[comreguy]

Dave and Buster's have many locations that are far less than two million people. Omaha, Jacksonville and Nashville off the top of my head... Several cities with about 2 million people have more than one (Denver). At the same time, all their locations are in cities notably larger than NWA (Omaha is the closest, but a large area uses that city as its entertainment).

[masons_dad1]

Here's some

[comreguy]

Here's some "official" market requirements for Dave & Buster's and some similar "family oriented" places. Note that the Pinnacle Hills area of Rogers nearly meets the market requirements for Dave & Buster's as well as a couple of the others; that is if they could double the range for the population.

Dave & Buster's

Features & Attractions:

Full-service dining featuring steaks and seafood

Sports bar and a Midway bar to play while you drink

Extensive drink menu

Big One Crane (a room-sized claw machine)

Carismo NASCAR-type simulator in a real race car chassis

Million Dollar Midway with over 200 arcade games to choose from

Winner's Circle ticket redemption section featuring cool toys and high-tech gadgets

Billiards with handcrafted mahogany and rosewood-railed tables

Shuffleboard

Market Requirements:

1,000,000 SF retail (1/4 mile)

100,000 daytime population (3 miles)

500,000 population (10 miles)

Site Requirements:

+/- 35,000 sq. ft.

+/- 175' x 200' Footprint

400 Parking Spaces (can be shared)

Two-Level Storefront Height/Facade

---------------------------------------

It'z Family, Food & Fun

Features & Attractions:

All-you-can-eat Buffet

Beer & Wine

Themed dining rooms

Gaming arcade with more than 150 games

Thrill rides

Indoor Rollercoaster for Families (not all locations)

Bowling lanes

Ticket redemption area featuring great prizes

And of course party facilities and group events

Market Requirements:

Population of 800,000 within 10 to 15 miles of location

Population of 300,000 within 5 miles of location

$45,000 average household income or greater

High concentration of families with children 15 and under

Children are at least 20% of local population

Strong growth area

Site Requirements:

35,000-65,000 sq. ft.

High visibility from major highways and/or thoroughfares

Located in large regional or major shopping centers, mall out parcels and lifestyle centers

---------------------------------

America's Incredible Pizza Company

Features & Attractions:

Incredible Buffet featuring 30 different varieties of pizza

Pasta Bar featuring create-your-own pasta/sauce combinations

Crisp, Fresh Salad Bar with more than 100 items

Mini Golf

Incredible Bowling lanes (not all locations)

Mini Bowl lanes for Kids (not all locations)

Go-Kart Races

Bumper Cars

Gaming arcade with more than 100 games

Super Fun Big Top Prizes

Incredible Kids' Play Area

And of course Party Rooms and Group Events

Market Requirements:

High traffic "A" locations

Population over 50,000

Site Requirements:

22,000- to 90,000-square foot

--------------------------------

Main Event Entertainment

Features & Attractions:

Bowling lanes with Bumper Bowling for Kids and Laser Jam Bowling

Regulation Billiard tables and shuffleboard located in Shots Bar

Multi-level Laser Tag

Giant Arcade featuring over 100 arcade games

Main Street Caf

[jdevers]

I may have been mistaken on the 2 Mil, but we will not have the density required to get a Dave and Busters, as all of our daytime and white-collar related density is stretched over 20 miles. There is not the "core population" and won't be as long as we are alive to support their concept.

[masons_dad1]

I have spoken directly with D&B's corporate real estate department and I can tell you that Arkansas is not on their radar.

Looking at the lastest Demo's for Rogers, AR (specifically Pinnacle): Within a 10 mile ring we have roughly 180,000 people. Without looking into a crystal ball, I would bet that we don't gain another 320,000 people anytime soon. So, actually, we aren't close to what Dave and Buster's requires for our market to be considered.

If I'm wrong, and they do decide to come here, I will buy you a beer and kick your tail in a game of video golf or shuffle board.