PLANS to open a bowling centre in Reading’s The Oracle shopping centre has moved a step closer.
Last year, Hollywood Bowl announced it would be moving to The Oracle Riverside, at the lower ground floor unit previously occupied by House of Fraser.
The Original Bowling Company has since won permission to sell food and provide entertainment such as bowling from 9am to 12.30am daily.
Alcohol can be sold between 10am to midnight each day.
It will be able to stay open until 2.30am on New Year’s Eve, with alcohol sales ending at 2am on that night.
The approval is just one step in the project to open the bowling centre, with work required on the unit it will occupy to make it suitable.
The House of Fraser unit is to be divided into three units for occupation by Hollywood Bowl, TK Maxx, and a to-be-confirmed occupier for the upper mall.
TK Maxx and Hollywood Bowl are due to open next summer, with work being undertaken on both units ahead of occupation.
It is thought fashion store Zara will move to the upper mall unit from its existing double-floor shop.
According to property marketing website Completely Retail, the former House of Fraser upper mall unit is under offer.
The activities for the Hollywood Bowl including the food and alcohol sales has been approved by Reading Borough Council’s licensing department.
The application that appeared in January was due discussed by the council’s licensing applications sub-committee on Tuesday, March 5 – the hearing was called after the council’s planning department made a representation, which was subsequently withdrawn after consensus was reached between The Original Bowling Company and council.
The division of the House of Fraser unit and the former Debenhams unit into three new spaces each was approved by the council’s planning applications committee in September last year.
The three units created by the division of the Debenhams store are still to let, with these spaces being listed as ‘under redevelopment’ on the Completely Retail website.
