For the first time in 37 years, the Fifth Avenue Bowladrome has gone through a change in ownership. And the new group, including local lawyer and lifelong bowler Kyle Parker, has big plans for the aging facility.
The first change has already taken place. The downtown business has been re-named. Even though the signage hasn't yet been updated, the five-pin operation is now known as Black Diamond Lanes.
"My wife got me into skiing, and Black Diamond, as everybody knows, is used to indicate some of the more difficult runs on a hill," said the 39-year-old Parker, whose equal partners are local businessmen John Gomes and John Sethen. "What I'd like to do in here is create something less traditional, a little more edgy, than what your typical bowling lanes are."
Parker said he found building blueprints that date back to 1958. He laughingly added that his budget for renovating the 18,000 square-foot centre will be determined by his banker. Parker wants to have everything finished by April 22, the day the Coastal Insurance Provincial Open championships will start at Black Diamond and Nechako Lanes.
"Just because we're in B.C.'s north, it doesn't mean that we have any less than they have down south," said Parker, who was introduced to the five-pin game during his childhood years in Fort St. John and used to play in zone tournaments at Fifth Avenue. "I want to show them something that maybe they've never seen before."
Currently, the building has 28 lanes divided among three floors (10 lanes on each of the upper and main levels, eight on the lower level).
The most substantial modifications are planned for the main floor. Parker said the entrance will move from the east side to the west. As well, the four western-most lanes will be taken out and replaced by a lounge area. Parker said the new layout will help alleviate "a bottleneck" problem at the current entrance when large numbers of customers are trying to get inside.
The lounge will feature comfortable seating and televisions. The facility will also be licensed to serve alcohol. Parker knows he'll have to run that part of the business carefully.
"I am not planning on turning this place into a bar," he said. "One of my main focuses is on the kids, the YBC program, and I'm going to be doing everything I can to separate those two. I do not want kids being exposed to alcohol in here."
Parker said during YBC sessions, alcohol won't even be sold and will be kept out of sight.
The facility's lower level is used mostly for Cosmic Bowling, a popular option for customers celebrating birthday parties or holding special events. That level will also experience significant upgrades.
"I want to put in a lighting system and sound system that's much different than most of the systems anybody in this town has ever seen before," Parker said. "We're going to be looking at some lighting that's traditionally found in nightclubs, a lot of the specialty LED lighting and lasers. More than just bowling, I want it to be a visual show for people."
Parker estimates that, each week, the lanes attract 600 to 700 bowlers. That number includes YBC participants, league bowlers and open bowlers. It doesn't include those who drop in to play once in a while and it doesn't include party-goers.
Parker, an associate with Fletcher & Company, is putting his family law practice on hold for now so he can focus on his new venture, which he sees as part of the revitalization of the downtown. He and his partners assumed ownership of the lanes on Dec. 1.
For most of the past 37 years, the bowling centre was owned by Dr. Gabriel Yong. A Vancouver resident, Yong died in July of 2008 and his wife, Dulzura Arcay Yong, assumed control. Here in Prince George, Arcay Yong's sister, Mila Arcay, was the day-to-day manager.
Mila Arcay said the family "got a fair price" for the building, which had been up for sale on and off for the past several years.
Mila Arcay, 68, is now looking forward to retirement in the Philippines. She admitted, however, that seeing the business change hands brought out the emotions.
"I'm attached to our bowlers, our league bowlers, and I will miss them," she said. "But life has to go on, we have to move on. It was like my second home, that building."
Mila Arcay said she's glad Parker is the man who will take the bowling alley into its future.
"I am positive that the bowling is in good hands," she said. "He is a bowler, a good bowler. He has been connected with bowling for so long."
--- The new phone number for Black Diamond Lanes is 564-BOWL (2695).
