Milwaukie Bowl, in Milwaukie, Ore., is a third-generation alley started in 1957, and operated by Dave Husted. The lanes were closed in March and opened briefly at the end of October, before closing again for the statewide freeze.
Kristyna Wentz-Graff / OPB
Dave Husted’s father and grandfather built Milwaukie Bowl in 1957. Now Husted, the third-generation owner, is preparing for his son to take over the family business.
Before March, his plan to pass the Husted family business on to the fourth generation was on track. Then, on March 17, the coronavirus pandemic forced Milwaukie Bowl and about 50 other bowling centers across the state to close.
“We just thought it would be for a month or something, there was so much unknown,” Husted said. “Looking back, it has now been eight and a half months.”
Tawnya Zwicker, proprietor of Silver Creek Lanes in Silverton and executive director of the Oregon State Bowling Proprietors Association, also thought the initial closure would be temporary.
“I’m not sure how many businesses can withstand that length of closure,” Zwicker said. “No one is prepared for that.”
Silver Creek Lanes, the bowling center Zwicker’s family has owned since 2006, was closed for three months from March until June. Milwaukie Bowl was allowed to reopen for about two weeks at the end of October when Gov. Brown briefly relaxed business COVID-19 business restrictions in the Tri-County area. But a massive wave of infections in November again prompted Brown to close non-essential businesses like bowling alleys across Oregon.
Husted said he understands the decision. He would never want a patron or staff member getting sick at the alley. Still, he is frustrated by the lack of financial assistance for bowling centers and other family-owned businesses like restaurants and bars.
“It’s hard when we’ve done nothing wrong,” Husted said. “We didn’t make a bad business decision that came back and bit us. Then it would be on us. But we have done nothing wrong.”
Milwaukie Bowl, in Milwaukie, Ore., is a third-generation alley started in 1957, and operated by Dave Husted. The lanes were closed in March and opened briefly at the end of October, before closing again for the statewide freeze.
Kristyna Wentz-Graff / OPB
Husted said he was happy to reopen for a few weeks, but restrictions that forced the center to operate at a lower capacity were difficult. They could have no more than 50 people including staff in the building. In normal times, Milwaukie Bowl would hold around 100 people in a night.
“Even when open, it’s hard to make enough money when you can only get 30 to 40% of what you normally do,” Husted said.
Whether it’s “Uncle Sam, the state, or a combo of the two”, Husted thinks it’s past time for the government to bail out small businesses.
While he’s stressed about the future of his business, Husted says he isn’t thinking about permanent closure yet. He said the center is one of the oldest businesses in Clackamas County.
“It’s the only thing we know,” Husted said. “I grew up in the bowling center, and my son has too. We’re not experts but it’s the only thing we know, and we feel like we’ve done a good job.”
Eryk Jensen, head mechanic at Milwaukie Bowl, in Milwaukie, Ore., installs new foul line sensors Dec. 1, 2020. The third- generation lanes were closed in March and opened briefly at the end of October, before closing again for the statewide freeze.
Kristyna Wentz-Graff / OPB
Bowling alleys across Oregon remain shuttered
Tawnya Zwicker said that of the 49 bowling centers across Oregon that are members of the OSBPA, 41 are currently shuttered. Eight in rural and less-populated counties are able to with strong guidelines — either 25% of normal capacity or at a 50-person maximum building headcount.
She said most bowling centers are still owned and operated by families.
“Devastating, I guess, is the one word we could use,” Zwicker said.
In the six months, the Zwicker’s Silver Creek Lanes center was open again, Zwicker said they implemented robust protections against coronavirus which included enforcing face-mask usage, physical distancing, sanitation stations and plexiglass dividers between bowling lanes.
Business was at first slow to pick back up, Zwicker said. But bowlers returned as months went on.
Zwicker said older and league bowlers are often bowling centers’ most ardent supporters. Many came back, Zwicker said, but some stayed home.
“A lot of them, this is their social interaction, this is what they do,” Zwicker said. “They were almost begging us not to cancel. Their leagues are their activities.”
A small handful of centers across the state have closed their alleys for good. On Monday, Kellogg Bowl in Milwaukie announced on Facebook they were shutting down.
“We are broken-hearted to have to announce the permanent closure of Kellogg Bowl after a 58-year run,” owners Bill Oetken, Champ Husten and general manager Roxanne Oetken wrote in a Dec. 1 Facebook post. “It has been a very difficult decision. A business cannot endure 10 to 12 months of closure and be expected to survive. We cannot say that we did not try.”
Zwicker said she was sad to hear of Kellogg Bowl’s closure, but remains hopeful that most Oregon bowling centers will pull through the pandemic.
And Husted, the Milwaukie Bowl owner, isn’t ready to give up his family business any time soon.
“We’re not afraid to work,” Husted said. “If it’s just me and my son having to run this place for a while, that’s what we’ll do.”
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