BY VINCENT TODARO
Staff Writer
When Mid State Lanes shuts its doors next month, it will mark the end of an era.
A fixture in East Brunswick for about half a century, the bowling alley at the Mid State Mall, Route 18, is expected to close because its owner was unable to negotiate a new lease agreement with the landlord, Mid State Hye. The alley is owned and operated by AMF Bowling Centers, which owns bowling alleys nationwide.
Pat Foster, a shift leader at the alley, said the company “absolutely” wants to remain at the location but is being forced to close its doors. AMF’s real estate department is looking for a new location, but it will likely take years before one is found and ready for opening.
The closure means that about 40 employees, some full time others part time, could soon be without work, though AMF is trying to place them in other centers.
In addition, the roughly 100 bowling leagues that use the facility will be without a home when the bowling alley closes in early May.
Marianne Wehrenberg, executive director of the East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce, said she was very sad to hear the news.
“[My family] has been in East Brunswick over 30 years, and I remember taking my kids there and having leagues,” she said. “It’s sad that a community like this is going to lose bowling leagues, but I guess we don’t have a choice.”
She said she spoke with some of the alley’s bowlers and they told her that making other arrangements is difficult, as even the lanes in nearby North Brunswick are packed.
“So it seems like there’s a need here,” Wehrenberg said.
She feels that the reason being given for the closure is “just a surface way of saying, ‘We have other ideas and this is the most legitimate way to end this relationship.’”
There have been rumors that the bowling alley will be replaced by a health club, and the pending redevelopment of the nearby Golden Triangle, also on Route 18, may be playing a role in what is ultimately located at the Mid State Mall. Wehrenberg noted that there could be a “large health club” seeking to benefit from the new residents who move in at the Golden Triangle.
With Sam’s Club soon being forced to leave its location at the Golden Triangle to make way for the new “transit village” proposed there by Toll Brothers, Wehrenberg wondered whether the bowling alley site would be suitable for the next Sam’s Club location.
“I’d like to see the community find a place for Sam’s Club when the Golden Triangle comes in,” she said. “That’s a place that should stay.”
She said Sam’s Club has looked at other properties in East Brunswick, including the site of the former Meyer’s Shopping Center, which will become a new shopping center called Summerhill Square.
While it remains unknown what the future will bring, what is known as that thousands of local bowlers will be losing their home alley.
The lanes are used by all ages – from 3-year-olds who use a ramp and push the ball, to even one 96-year-old bowler who uses the lanes, Foster said.
The alley, she noted, serves as more than just an outlet for hobbyists and casual bowlers.
“It’s very social and very competitive,” Foster said.
Bowling also remains one of the cheapest ways for a family to enjoy an afternoon together, she noted. While going to a baseball or football game can be costly, a family of four can have an afternoon of bowling for about $50, including games, food and shoes.
Foster, who has worked at the alley for 23 years, long before AMF took it over, said she has yet to decide where she’ll go from here, though she has been offered different positions by AMF.
Regardless, she will look back on many fond memories at the East Brunswick facility, including a wedding that took place there and the times she worked in the nursery.
“Some of those kids are parents now,” she said. “I’ve been at the alley a long time and seen a lot of changes.”