Family-owned restaurant and recreation complex pitches Apple Valley location
Skyline Social & Games, which has one location near Duluth, cleared a couple of rungs on the ladder of permits and approvals this week in the hopes of bringing its second location and scores of sports leagues to the Orchard Place shopping center.
Before Plymouth-based developer HJ Development turned it into Orchard Place, the land at the corner of Pilot Knob Road and 155th Street West was a gravel mining site. The area is now home to tenants like Lunds & Byerlys, Chipotle, HealthPartners, Punch Pizza and Mister Car Wash.
'We've heard (from residents) throughout our process as we've been developing (Orchard Place), 'We'd like something unique that isn't throughout the metro,'' said Chris Moe, a partner at HJ Development, during Wednesday's planning commission meeting.
According to the project's site plan, the nearly 100,000-square-foot facility would be constructed directly to the west of Lunds & Bylerlys at the corner of English Avenue and 155th Street West.
Headquartered in Hermantown, Minn., Skyline has been a family-owned business since 1976 and currently at the helm is third-generation owner Corey Kolquist and his wife, Whitney Kolquist.
Formerly known as Dave's Pizza or Skyline Lanes, the business rebranded in 2019 and now hosts around 1,000 guests nightly in the warmer months and averages 500 guests nightly in the colder months, according to the project narrative.
Current site plans for the Apple Valley location include the construction of a roughly 46,550-square-foot indoor recreation facility with a restaurant and a roughly 51,150-square-foot outdoor recreation facility and patio.
Sand volleyball, cornhole and bocce courts are planned for the outdoor area, which would also include a bar, fire pits, outdoor dining seating, speakers and stadium lighting, according to city documents. Some 329 parking stalls are planned for the parking lot.
The indoor space would include five ax-throwing bays, a 60-game arcade, 14 bowling lanes and 12 duckpin lanes.
Similar to traditional bowling, duckpin bowling features shorter lanes and smaller, squatter pins that are attached to strings. The idea is when the bowling ball, which is also smaller, crashes into the pins, they scatter similar to a flock of ducks flying.
A rezoning proposal will be paramount to Skyline's construction.
The project area is currently zoned as 'retail business,' which works for the indoor recreation facility, but not the outdoor one, which would need to be rezoned as 'planned development,' according to city documents.
One point of contention at Wednesday's meeting was a standard that read, 'No patrons shall be present and no recreational activities shall occur within the outdoor recreation facility area between the hours of 11 p.m. and 10 a.m.'
The hour limitation was proposed by city staff with consideration to nearby residential properties, said Sydnee Stroeing, associate planner for the city.
Skyline President Corey Kolquist took issue with the limitation, saying his business hosts graduation parties in the spring that start earlier on weekend mornings.
Kolquist emphasized that any music would be turned off at 10:30 p.m. and the lights turned off at 11 p.m., adding, 'It's not a concert hall.'
Ultimately, Kolquist and the commission agreed to adjust the off-hours from 11 p.m. to 8 a.m.
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After discussion Wednesday, the planning commission recommended approval of the rezoning and approval of the site plan and building permit authorization.
Next, the project is expected to move on to the Apple Valley City Council for further review.
Should the project come to fruition, Skyline expects to employ 120 to 150 staff members at the new location.
'The Apple Valley location is expected to generate significant economic impact, including an estimated $650,000-$800,000 in sales tax, $321,000 in payroll tax and over $250,000 in property tax,' according to the project narrative.
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