WENTZVILLE In a decades-old and mostly empty mall, two brothers want to open a community entertainment center they say will be unlike any other in the St. Louis region. Picture a nightclub where patrons can hear national Christian acts in a nonalcoholic and smoke-free setting.
Add to that a bowling alley, rock climbing wall, coffeehouse and skate park in the same building. The property, first known as the Belz Factory Outlet Center and later renamed the Mall at Wentzville Crossings, had a pothole-filled parking lot and was nearly vacant when Darain Atkinson, 42, and Cory Atkinson, 37, bought it last March to house their business, National Auto Warranty Services. We didn't have any idea what we wanted to do with it at first, Darain Atkinson said.
With our Christian faith and our background, we wanted a place where people could go with their family without smoking and drinking. And based on similar recreation and entertainment venues in other parts of the country, the Atkinsons think their $5 million community center could be popular in St. Charles County.
There is nothing like that in this area, and I believe we are going to be very successful, said Darain Atkinson, who has experience in bar and restaurant management. We want people to come in and be totally blown away and wowed. The brothers are basing their faith in their plan on the success of places such as Rocketown in Nashville, Tenn.
The 40,000-square-foot entertainment center has an indoor skate park, coffee bar and three stages. It is the brainchild of Christian music star Michael W. Smith.
Since opening in downtown Nashville about four years ago, Rocketown has attracted 100,000 to 125,000 visitors each year, development director Audra Davis said. Although the club's target age group is 12- to 20-year-olds, the venue hosts shows for all ages that are smoke- and alcohol-free, she said. At first, Rocketown had a difficult time attracting bands because some groups feared they wouldn't sell as many tickets with smoking and alcohol restrictions, Davis said.
But after booking a few big names for successful concerts, the venue and its staff built a good reputation with musicians, she said. Now, Rocketown staffers enjoy lending their knowledge and experience as their venue becomes a model to developers such as the Atkinsons. Davis said: We've had, literally, hundreds of folks contact us who wanted to do something similar in their community.
It's been fun to share our experience and kind of create a network of organizations trying to do this and make an impact for teens. For adults, I think it's great that there's a place where you don't have to worry about drunk folks being around while you are trying to enjoy a concert. Other inspiration for the Atkinsons' community center is Club 3 Degrees in Minneapolis and the Bridge in Joplin, a club in southwestern Missouri that also combines entertainment, recreation and Christianity.
Don Sanders, one of the ministers at Harvester Christian Church in St. Charles, said some of his parishioners would probably make the drive to Wentzville to see national Christian music artists in a more intimate setting than the Family Arena, which has hosted groups such as MercyMe. I would hope that it would work, Sanders said.
I would think the community would welcome and want a place where you can get a positive message and connect with people. In Wentzville, the Atkinsons' building had a poor history with retail. It opened in 1983 as the Belz Factory Outlet Center.
It originally housed 48 stores, including Old Time Pottery and the Burlington Coat Factory. Burlington cited declining business when it left the complex in 2001. The complex was renamed the Mall at Wentzville Crossings in 1997.
Recently, it had been called the Wentzville Crossings Exposition and Convention Center and hosted events such as gun and motorcycle shows. The Atkinsons bought the building for $5.9 million for space for their growing company.
National Auto Warranty Services uses 180,000 square feet of the 360,000-square-foot building. Since more than 350 employees began working there, crews have resurfaced the parking lot, added landscaping and repainted the exterior. The Wentzville Board of Aldermen is scheduled to vote Wednesday on the final development plan for the community center.
The Christian music club could be open by September or October, Darain Atkinson said. It's going to be a great place that people can go and listen to live music, local bands and nationwide bands, he said. We are striving for big-time acts.
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