The ALLPLaY Family Entertainment Center in Waldoboro is up for sale just over a year after its owners bought property to build a second location in Belfast.
Donald and Kelly Benson opened the Waldoboro ALLPLaY in the former location of DePatsy’s Lanes on Route 220 in the fall of 2009, offering candlepin bowling; billiards; a cafe; and an arcade where tickets can be redeemed for prizes.
Described as a “turn-key business opportunity,” the property is listed for sale at $449,500, according to the Cates Real Estate website.
Donald Benson told The Lincoln County News on March 13 the decision to put the Waldoboro center up for sale is part of an attempt to simplify the couples’ lives.
“I’m almost 60 years old and we find the two [locations] are really a little bit more than we can handle,” Benson said.
“My wife and I find it hard to go in two different directions all the time,” he said.
The commute is also a factor: the Bensons live in Lincolnville, and the trip to Waldoboro takes them a little over an hour, Benson said.
Since ALLPLaY expanded to Belfast last year, “Waldoboro’s been doing very well,” Benson said. “In fact if wasn’t for Waldoboro we wouldn’t have been able to expand up to this location in Belfast, and Belfast has been doing extremely well.”
Benson anticipates they will have to hold on to the property for quite a while until they find the right buyer. He specifically mentioned his aversion to having it turned into a bar.
The buyer could choose to operate the business under the ALLPLaY name, Benson said, ” but I’m going to be fussy about who I sell it to I guess because if they do want to keep the ALLPLaY name, it’s going to have to be the auspices of being a family entertainment center.”
Aside from an outright sale, the Bensons are considering refinancing the Waldoboro property and having someone operate it on their behalf.
The Bensons do not plan to close the Waldoboro location.
The center may close for a week or 10 days in May when the couple takes vacation, but “we’re not going to close the doors,” Benson said.
