A New Venue Featuring Shuffleboard Enlivening Former Cinema in Western Pennsylvania

On a stretch of Route 378 in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania, a depressed strip mall is being given a makeover that will feature shuffleboard, bowling, billiards, and happy hour. Owners hope that these renovations will bring visitors back to the once-bustling area. In 2011, the Saucon Valley Square shopping center was sent down the path to the grave when it lost three of its largest anchor tenants: Blockbuster Video, Pathmark, and the 40,000-square-foot Regal Cinema. Jim Fortunato, the General Manager of Revolutions—a national chain of family-friendly entertainment venues—has taken it upon himself to turn the strip mall back into a destination for locals to come together. Revolutions at Saucon Valley will feature more than 20 bowling lanes, an arcade, 50 flat-screen televisions, billiards, two stages for live entertainment, and shuffleboard tables for the whole family to enjoy during the day. By night, a DJ will take the stage, and the entertainment facility will adopt a dance club vibe while still allowing guests to enjoy the fun and games. The facility, which occupies the space vacated by the massive Cinema, also features a full-service restaurant adjacent to a central bar area called The Red Brick Grille, seating 100 people. Not only will the club bring table shuffleboard and a healthy dose of nightlife to the area, but it will also create more than 100 permanent jobs in the Valley, which has been hard hit by the Great Recession. Revolutions can currently be found across the East Coast. The next closest location will be opening in Syracuse, New York, later this year, while venues in Rock Hill, South Carolina, and West Palm Beach, Florida, are already serving up great nightlife and shuffleboard to residents of those communities.