Business & Tech

What Happened To Strike 'N Spare?

AMF Bowling closed up shop at the Creve Coeur area site after Labor Day.

In recent years, the Thanksgiving holiday would have meant bowling fans could spend some of their spare time at Strike 'N Spare, the longtime alley located next to the campus of the just outside of Creve Coeur. That wasn't the case this year.

AMF operated the facility under a 10 year lease from the JCC that still had two five year extensions left, due to kick in on January 1, 2012. The decision to close came after Labor Day and, according to people who worked there, came quickly and without explanation. AMF officials have not returned several requests for comment.

Jewish Community Center officials won't say why they think AMF decided to leave, chalking it up to a business decision.

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Rent from the property helps pay for some of the Center's programs, but administrators said in an interview with Patch last month that they didn't anticipate any short-term funding problems. Lease payments are being made through December.

"We are open minded to whatever the best opportunity is for the J to get that space leased and generating income so we can use it for our tax-exempt purposes," said Steve Rosenzweig, Chief Operating and Financial Officer for the JCC.

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He added that the alley had been a destination for some of the JCC's dayprograms in the past and that any new use would not compete with the recreation and daycare programs currently offered there.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that there is litigation pending between the Center and AMF over bowling equipment.


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