Like just about every other FEC, it’s been a rough few months for Scene75, the Ohio-based chain with its five locations. But a light at the end of the tunnel is in sight. Their Columbus location is open now, and Cleveland and Cincinnati are set to reopen on July 10.
Operating under a shortened, weekends-only schedule, Scene75 founder Jonah Sandler told WCPO that the entertainment center has developed a “Stay-Safe Playbook” with a detailed outline of their COVID-era plans. The short version: 50% capacity, gloves required for f&b team, increased sanitation stations, additional sanitization (hence the weekday closure), and much more. Read their full reopening playbook here.
A couple, more specific changes include: laser tag limited to 20 guests at a time; certain games may be turned off, such as self-serve VR games; and batting cages will be limited to four people per lane.
Hours at the open locations will be Fridays and Saturdays from 11 a.m.-11 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m.-9 p.m. The location in Pittsburgh remains closed for COVID, and its Dayton location is closed due to tornado-related renovations.
“It’s been the most challenging time period of my life,” Sandler said. “I’ve been doing this now for 10 years, and we have a lot of team members who have been in this industry for even longer than that, and this is something that our industry has never experienced.” Staff had to be cut during the shutdown from 750 to 35 people, and not all will be returning until revenue stabilizes.
But he added the business has “used all the time to prepare to be bigger, better and stronger when we open.” See what else they’re up to at www.scene75.com.
