It’s the perfect combination: People love pickleball, and if they can sample craft foods and drinks at the same time? That’s a winning formula. Just ask Iowa-based Smash Park, a company that operates indoor pickleball venues and is firmly in expansion mode.
Smash Park’s formula is now coming to the Minneapolis-St. Paul market. The company announced in November that it will begin construction on its first Twin Cities location this fall in the suburb of Roseville, Minnesota. The venue is scheduled to open in the fall of 2023.
A growing company
Smash Park Entertainment Group has already opened locations in West Des Moines and Pella, Iowa. The company also plans to to open a pickleball center in Omaha, Nebraska.
Monty and Kerri Lockyear started Smash Park Entertainment Group in 2018. According to the company’s website, their goal was to create something new, active and social. They settled on pickleball for the same reasons that the sport’s popularity has grown so quickly: The game is easy to learn and master. It fosters a healthy, active lifestyle. And it encourages socialization.
After opening the first Smash Park in Des Moines in 2018, the Lockyears opened their second in 2022 in Pella, Iowa.
Can’t ignore the demand
In a press release announcing the Twin Cities location, Monty Lockyear said that demand for the sport has been high enough to encourage Smash Park to make the leap to a new market.
“Enthusiasm for pickleball and ‘eatertainment’ seems to grow by the day. We plan to delight area residents with fun recreation and entertainment options for every age with top-notch scratch food and drinks.”
Monty Lockyear, CEO of Smash Park Entertainment Group, in a written statement
According to Smash Park, the new Roseville venue will include 30,000 square feet of indoor space housing pickle ball courts and a restaurant serving craft food and drinks. The space will also house a Paddle Club solely for patrons 21 and older.
And for those who want more than pickleball? The center will also offer ax-throwing, karaoke, duckpin bowling and live music. A 15,000-square-foot outdoors space will feature a patio, rooftop bar, televisions and yard games.
Smash Park plans, too, to host local pickleball leagues each week.
The new Smash Park will be located in the Twin Lakes Station retail center at 1743 County Road C West in Roseville.
And though plans are still in the early stages, Smash Park is also planning a second Twin Cities location that the company hopes to open in 2024.
