1 of 3
Photo by Theresa Stanley
2 of 3
Photo by Theresa Stanley
3 of 3
Photo by Theresa Stanley
The family entertainment center Malibu Jack’s will relocate its Lexington facility to the former Kmart location at 2520 Nicholasville Road in 2018, creating an indoor amusement park that will rank among the largest in the country in terms of square footage, said co-owner Steve Hatton.
The company plans to expand its offerings to include 14 attractions at its new 115,000-square-foot facility, including a bowling alley, indoor roller coaster and a kids’ area with inflatables catering to children under age 10.
“We have really just outgrown that spot,” Hatton said of the company’s current 45,000-square-foot facility on Blake James Drive near Palumbo Drive. “We feel like the city needs more than what we are currently offering.”
In terms of square footage, Hatton said the only completely indoor theme parks currently operating in the United States that would be larger are the Adventuredome at Circus Circus Las Vegas and the Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota. Malibu Jack’s current Lexington location already draws guests from both Central and Eastern Kentucky, Hatton said, and he expects the new location to attract visitors from across the region, including Kentucky and Ohio.
“Especially in the winter months, if you still want to ride rides and have fun, we are going to be the place to go,” Hatton said.
Hatton said he hopes the larger location and the wider variety of attractions will draw more customers of all ages. While the company's current facility already offers entertaining options for teens and adults, some of its more grown-up clientele mistakenly view it as a venue only for children, Hatton said. The visibility of the space on Nicholasville Road and its easy access to New Circle were strong selling points, in addition to the availability of more space to branch out with more attractions for wider appeal, Hatton said.
“We feel like it is at the center of the retail side of Lexington, and Nicholasville Road is the core of it,” said Hatton, who grew up in Lexington, along with his brothers and business partners, Jeff and Terry Hatton. “If we had to pick a spot where we could set up in the perfect building, that would be it. We hope to turn this area into a hotspot.”