Bowling alley renovation completed, scheduled to open in Nov.

After nearly a month of work, the renovation of the bowling alley was completed last week.

Previously named UIC Bowling, Billiards and Arcade Center, the facility now known as the UIC Student Game and Bowling Center is scheduled to open on Nov. 3. The facility has yet to open due to the employee training that will take place in the next two weeks.

Ruby Vega, the Bowling Center manager, said the renovation would "change the entire way the facility functions." She explained key aspects of the renovation included the installation of new lanes, along with a new seating arrangement and automatic scoring. Vega also explained that all lanes would be handicap accessible and will have bumper bowling capabilities.

Some of the other aspects of the renovation include replacing the pin spotters and ball returns, as well as adding new carpet, bowling balls, shoes and pins, according to Rob Rouzer, the executive associate director of Campus Auxiliary Services.

The total cost for the bowling alley's renovation is estimated at $675,000. The amount was determined after a bid was placed between bowling companies including Brunswick, Murrey and AMF. According to Rouzer, the renovation will be "funded through a repair and replacement fund that all the auxiliary service facilities pay into annually."

The contract was awarded to AMF after they gave the lowest price of the competing companies for the renovation. AMF is replacing Brunswick, the company that was previously contracted with the facility.

The renovation project comes nearly 10 years after it was initially introduced, when synthetic lanes were put down to replace the lanes that were installed in 1965, when the facility opened.

Much of the rest of the facility, including several of the pool tables, has been untouched since it originally opened, causing the state of the facility to deteriorate over time. The facilities' deterioration affected the number of bowlers, according to Vega, including a bowling league that has seen its membership diminish over time due to concerns with the quality of the lanes.

According to Rouzer, over the next few years auxiliary facilities expects to do other renovations in the Bowling Center. These renovations will include new lights and ceilings, bathroom upgrades and new floor surfaces and window treatments.

While the $675,000 pays for the renovation of the bowling alley itself, it does not cover all the costs of the recent renovation, including the refurbishment of the 16 pool tables found in the facility. Eleven of the tables were among the original materials that were installed in the facility upon its initial opening, requiring much needed refurbishment.

The pool tables were refurbished by Beecher's Billiards at the cost of approximately $1,000 a table.

The Student Game and Bowling Center is expected to increase the number of students it employs now that the renovation is completed. Previously employing anywhere from 10 to 16 employees, Vega expects to have at least 24 students to work at the renovated facility.

Bowling Center employee Krystin Fuller, a fifth-year English major who has worked at the facility for two years, is looking forward to the opening of the facility to the public.

"It will probably bring more business and students," Fuller explained. She also expressed excitement over the quality of the new lanes.

Due to the renovation, Vega said that people should expect to pay a little more than before. The cost for students to play pool and bowling will rise by 50 cents while the cost for the public to play pool will rise by $1.