Opening date set for entertainment complex near Charlotte after $15 million renovation

A new entertainment venue with bowling, bars, arcades, laser tag, escape rooms and restaurants and other games will open next month in Pineville near Carolina Place mall.

Spare Time Entertainment will open Aug. 9 at 9600 Pineville-Matthews Road in the former Dick’s Sporting Goods site, with construction and hiring under way, company officials told the Observer this week.

The 50,000-square-foot family entertainment center has undergone about $15 million in renovations, said Roger Philipi, regional director for Spare Time Entertainment for the Carolinas.

“It’s a staycation destination,” Philipi said. “Converting a Dick’s Sporting Goods to a family entertainment center is quite the transformation.”

Spare Time bought the building three years ago, Philipi said. The venue was scheduled to open in May 2020 and construction was about 80% finished when the coronavirus pandemic struck, halting renovations for several months.

It’s not the first Charlotte-area venue for the company.

Spare Time Entertainment opened its first local complex on Statesville Road in Huntersville seven years ago. Spare Time spent about $9 million in renovations at that site, according to Philipi.

“We’re far from cookie-cutter in our designs,” he said, adding that each site is custom built to the building.

Spare Time Entertainment is a 52-year-old, family-owned business based in Vermont. There are 18 locations in 10 states, including four in the Carolinas — in Pineville, Huntersville, Greensboro and Greenville, S.C.

What to expect

Spare Time Entertainment has multiple attractions.

“You can really make the experience be for an entire day,” Philipi said. “We’re not a bowling alley, it’s just one of the many attractions that we have.”

Here’s what’s at the Pineville location:

▪ Bowling with 14 lanes and plush seats, plus theater-sized HD video walls.

▪ Laser tag with music, fog and special effects.

▪ Two escape rooms.

▪ A 10,000-square-foot arcade with over 80 games and a prize store.

Spare Time also includes multiple bars and a full-service restaurant, with lunch and dinner menus including pizzas, sandwiches and burgers.

And for dessert is the Share Time Sundae, packed with ice cream, pretzels, Belgian waffle, brownie pieces, marshmallows and Oreo cookies topped with syrups, whipped cream, sprinkles and, of course, a cherry on top.

There’s also event spaces, including a private suite with a bar, couches and six bowling lanes. There’s also an all-weather patio.

Hiring underway

The Pineville location will hire about 120 full- and part-time employees, Philipi said.

Hiring has begun with open interviews from 2-7 p.m. July 13-16 at Hilton Garden Inn at 425 Town Centre Blvd. in Pineville.

This story was originally published July 8, 2021 at 6:30 AM.