Inverness bowling alley looking forward to reopening after coronavirus lockdown
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
Inverness’s only tenpin bowling centre is getting ready to rumble again after the Covid lockdown – and when it does it will be shining like a brand new pin.
The owner of Rollerbowl in Culduthel Road, Inverness has used the enforced closure to carry out renovations at “huge cost”, including installing new systems to keep the public safe when they return.
These include having only alternate lanes open to make social distancing easier.
However, while First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has given the go-ahead for bowling alleys to reopen this week Shahid Yusaf said Inverness lovers of the game will have to be just a little bit patient.
“I was under the impression that bowling would open when gyms and swimming pools opened and the word was that could be September 14,” he said.
“In any case it could be two weeks until renovation is complete because I have included the kitchens for the licensed diner as well as new bathrooms, carpets and redecoration.
“The staff are coming in a week from now for training in the sanitisation procedures. We have new sanitisation stations, and there will be 20 minutes spent on cleaning between customers leaving an alley and new ones coming in, and there will be wipes available if customers feel more comfortable doing it themselves.”
Mr Yusaf (61), who has seen generations of bowling fans enjoy the game during his 31 years at Rollerbowl, added: “We can’t wait to get open again. It will be very pleasant, clean and hygienic.”
For bingo fans it will also be “eyes down” again from Thursday at Carlton Bingo’s hall at Beechwood in Inverness.
Operations director Mike Watret said: We will have to operate at much reduced capacity from the near 1000 Beechwood can seat, and we ask customers to look out for details online of our new booking system.”
Gyms, swimming pools and indoor sports courts can reopen from Monday next week if virus infection rates remain low.
Click here for more coronavirus news
