(Updated at 11:40 a.m.) A new virtual indoor golf facility on Columbia Pike hopes to open by the end of the month.
The independently-owned Par Citi plans to open in the old LoanMax building at 3102 Columbia Pike “within the next few weeks,” managing partner Kristian Hara told ARLnow. That likely means tee time will be in the back end of May.
Construction is essentially complete with the business just waiting on receiving the certificate of occupancy from the county, he said.
The golf-centric complex will feature “state of the art simulators” inside of individual bays, similar to Five Iron Golf in D.C., per Hara. There will also be a cafe and bar with a Virginia ABC permit pending.
While it will technically be two floors, the basement level will be closed off per county instructions and the putting green in the original plans had to be axed, Hara said.
ARLnow first reported that Par Citi was aiming to putt on the Pike back in September. While a building once occupied by a car title lending company may seem like a odd place for indoor golf simulators, Columbia Pike provides a great opportunity because of the “potential of the neighborhood with the new condos [and] apartments being built,” Hara said.
A block away from Par Citi, construction on the Westmont development continues and could be wrapped up within the next several months. It will feature 250 apartments and a Five Guys returning near the spot of its first ever location.
Another block down, the Bank of America at 3401 Columbia Pike will be redeveloped and replaced with a residential development.
Hara said availability of space also played a big part in the decision to bring Par Citi to Columbia Pike, as opposed to another Arlington neighborhood like Ballston or Clarendon.
Prior to Par Citi and LoanMax, 3102 Columbia Pike was home to a family-owned furniture and appliance store that was a bit of a community-gathering place in the 1950s and 1960s. Owner Sol Cohen used to keep the store open late on Friday nights so that neighbors could watch boxing.