New Family Fun Center in a zone of its own
Gaee Giblin fires ball through a canon on the second level of a play pen.
Alex Muzquiz, 7, runs away from the opposing team in a game of Laser Tag with friends.
Oceane Rosenberg, 9, looks for a target below to throw a ball toward.
Shots are exchanged by the green and magenta teams in a game of Laser Tag.
Lauren Samuel, 13, helps Abby Gascoigne, 8, get set up while Adelle Gascoigne, left, puts on her vest prior to a game of a Laser Tag.
Oceane Rosenberg looks up watch balls she puts into a dispenser get sucked to the second level of the play pen.
Gaee Giblin has ball fall down on him from second level of the play pen.
Danielle Rosenberg, 11, fires a shot from gun during a game of Laser Tag at the Zone Family Fun Center on Wednesday.
For several years, Amber Collier heard parents talk about how much the Flathead Valley needed a place for kids to congregate. They needed a safe place to play games with their friends and families.
For several years, Collier heard about the need but didn’t address it.
“I was a real estate broker and real estate was booming. There was no motivation” to switch gears and create a fun center for kids, she said.
But then the economy tanked. Collier’s real estate sales dropped off. And the need for a fun place for kids was as strong as ever.
So Collier got to work creating that place, The Zone Family Fun Center on U.S. 2 north of Kalispell.
“Now was as good a time as any to take a chance,” Collier said. “I wasn’t going to let the economy bring the Flathead Valley down.”
The Zone features activities that kids of all ages can enjoy, she said.
There is an arcade, a 3,500-square-foot laser tag arena, bumper cars and an inflatable bounce house. People can shoot soft foam balls at one another in the “Crazy Zone” — Collier says parents have as much fun in there as their children do — and would-be spies can test their agility in a laser-beam maze.
The center opened Dec. 18.
“I figured even if I weren’t completely ready, I wanted to get it open so kids had something to do over winter break, something safe,” she said.
The Zone will be open throughout Christmas break, including for several hours Christmas Day. It also will host a lock-in on New Year’s Eve.
From 9 p.m. Dec. 31 to 9 a.m. Jan. 1, children ages 7 to 18 may stay at The Zone to play unlimited laser tag and games for $65 each, or $100 for two children. Pizza and sodas are included, Collier said.
“It’s something safe for kids to do while their parents go out and have a good time,” she said.
Collier began planning for the fun center about a year ago. She attended a weeklong workshop of the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions in Las Vegas to get ideas. The event included five miles of booths and classes on various attractions, she said.
Collier soaked it all in, scoping out activities and games and trying to figure out “which ones might suit the Flathead best.”
“There was a lot of fun stuff at the show I would have liked to have if I would have had more budget,” she said. “But you’ve got to start somewhere. I don’t have deep pockets by any means. I’m just a normal citizen here.”
She said she was rejected by several banks and private citizens while trying to secure financing for the center. Finally Montana West Economic Development got behind the project. Between its help, a few private investors and part of Collier’s own savings, The Zone became reality.
The public already has embraced the center, Collier said. She acknowledged that there have been some “logistical issues,” but for the most part, The Zone’s opening has been smooth.
And it is benefiting more than just kids, she added. Construction on the project, which began in September, kept local contractors employed. She has hired 15 people to work at the center and has plans to hire more as money and expansion plans allow.
She also insists on buying local, which means The Zone’s produce comes from The Apple Barrel next door. Other products come from Glacier Wholesalers.
“It keeps the money in the Flathead,” she said.
The Zone hasn’t been open long, but Collier already is looking to the future. The center’s 18-foot slide, which employees slide down to start their work days, doubles as a water slide and will be moved outside when the weather permits. Another inflatable bounce house likely will take its place indoors, Collier said.
She also hopes to expand the laser tag arena to include more square footage, more guns and off-site capabilities.
“When we have more guns ... maybe we can do some parties on location, maybe a senior prom kind of thing, where we bring it to the school, rent the equipment and send an attendant to help run it,” she said.
Expanded laser tag also may include offerings specifically for grown-ups.
“Probably after we get some of the bugs worked out in January, we’ll start an adult laser tag league,” Collier said. “They can take on our Zone crew. We’ve been practicing; we can’t have somebody come into our house and beat us.”
She laughed. “Some kids in here have given us a run for our money.”
But any expansion plans ultimately will be driven by demand. That, Collier said, is why she set up a Facebook page, www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/The-Zone-Family-Fun-Center/105554059476874, for The Zone.
“We want to know, when we get to the point where we want to expand, what everybody wants,” she said. “This is a community place. This isn’t my place.
“We want them to take ownership in it and help us decide where they want to take it.”
For more information on The Zone, visit www.zonefamilyfun.com.
Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com.