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Bowling to make triumphant return to Orangeville in new year

December 14, 2018   ·   0 Comments

By Mike Baker

Bowling is coming back to Orangeville.

That was the exciting news shared by local entrepreneur Jay Marks this week as he announced a new business, Bowling on Broadway, will launch in April.

An Orangeville resident since 2003, Mr. Marks feels the community has been in desperate need of a bowling alley ever since the old Kingpin Bowl shut down in 2010. Now, he plans to bring a unique bowling and entertainment experience back to Dufferin County.

“We are beyond excited to be able to say we’re bringing bowling back to Orangeville. It’s something this town has been in dire need of for years and years,” Mr. Marks told the Citizen. “For the past few years, whenever my family and I have wanted to do something we’ve had to travel to Guelph, Newmarket or Brampton. We’ve seen there’s a need here in Orangeville and we hope to fill that need for years to come.”

Rumours have been rumbling on social media all week long as the community caught wind of a potential development. A Facebook user going by Scott Barnes announced a lavish 24-lane facility would soon be constructed in Orangeville. The post, featured on the Orangeville and Area Q & A and Community Info page, boasted 2,100 reactions, 451 comments and 428 shares as of press time. Mr. Marks has since confirmed he has no affiliation with Mr. Barnes, but was keen to tap into the community’s obvious enthusiasm for a big bowling return.

The Bowling on Broadway facility will be located at 276 Broadway, in the same plaza as The Dollar Tree and The Beer Store. Described as a boutique bowling and entertainment lounge, the site will boast four state-of-the-art ten-pin bowling lanes, party rooms, retro arcade games, a licensed lounge serving fresh food, live entertainment, karaoke and a dance floor. 

“We’re looking at this being a one-stop entertainment hub for the community. We’re hoping to cater to everyone’s needs,” Mr. Marks said. “There will be party rooms to accommodate kids’ birthday parties, bowling, video games, ping pong room. There’s lots to be excited about.”

He noted the decision to go with four lanes was made following two years of extensive research.

“We want to be sustainable here and four lanes, for us, was the magic number for the size of our community. The old-school 24 lane mentality of bowling alleys just doesn’t work anymore. We simply don’t have the demographics to support those kind of numbers,” Mr. Marks said.

He estimates the new business will create between six and 10 jobs in the community, with a mixture of full-time and part-time positions. While he has yet to submit all the necessary paper work and applications to the Town of Orangeville, he will be doing so shortly after the new year. Providing there are no surprise hiccups, Mr. Marks hopes to launch Bowling on Broadway on April 15. 

This won’t be a maiden business venture for Mr. Marks, who has successfully owned and operated Nature’s Mark Landscaping in town for more than 14 years. Adding Bowling on Broadway to his business portfolio, Mr. Marks hopes he’ll still be here another 14 years from now celebrating two milestone anniversaries. 

“We want to be around for a long time to come and we’re absolutely expecting to be a big part of the community,” Mr. Marks said. 

“Bowling is fun. My wife and I have been frequent bowlers all our life and used to go regularly when (Kingpin) was still up and running. We’re hoping to bring bowling back to Orangeville with a bang, give something for families to do and give adults somewhere cool to kick back and relax at night. It’s safe to say, we can’t wait for April to come around.”

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