Photo by Pianoman75

If you’ve ever caught yourself thinking that what D.C. really needs is more fancy bowling, then you might soon be in luck—the developer of the shuttered Georgetown Park Mall has asked the city for permission to build an upscale 12-lane bowling alley and restaurant on the mall’s first floor.

According to an application filed with the Board of Zoning Adjustment earlier this week, Pinstripes, which operates three bowling alley/restaurants in Illinois and one in Minnesota, wants to open its fifth location in Georgetown, bringing Italian dining, bowling and bocce to a mall that is in the process of being fully redeveloped.

The plans envision a restaurant on the mall’s first level—fronting Wisconsin Avenue—that seats 100, the 12 bowling lanes and three bocce courts. A second floor would include banquet rooms and two more bocce courts. Each game at Pinstripes’ other locations cost $5 not including the $4 for shoes, while entrees range from $17 to $27. (If the plan comes to pass, it will be the second such amenity in the city; Lucky Strike occupies space in Gallery Place.)

Seemingly prepared for some pushback from local residents, the proposal tries to downplay the bowling element, saying that only 20 percent of the restaurant’s square footage will be dedicated to the sport and that less than five percent of its clientele are expected to partake. “The primary focus of the establishment will be on its food,” says the proposal, which cites menu items such as filet mignon, maple glazed salmon jumbo lump crab cake and “other fine-dining items.”

While the area around the mall if largely commercial, there are 100 condos atop the mall. David Miller, one resident who has lived there for the past five years, said he was mixed on the idea. “As recreation, it’s a great idea. But there are three main concerns: noise, noise and noise,” he said. Miller said he was concerned with any vibrations that might be felt through the building from the bowling alley, and would also look to the mall’s developer, Vornado, to answer questions as to when music would be played and how loud it would be.

Vornado’s proposal, which would require the Board of Zoning Adjustment to verify that five conditions have been met, directly addresses the issue of noise, saying that the complex will “incorporate significant sound attenuation measures to isolate the venue acoustically.” It also promises controls on the volume of music and additional insulation throughout the restaurant and bowling lanes.

Miller isn’t particularly optimistic that Vornado will share many details with residents or hear them out, though. “I don’t believe there’s any concern, at all, about the who, what, where it is in that mall, and the impact it may have on the residents above it. I don’t think it’s even in their lexicon of thinking,” he said of the New York-based developer, with which he said there has been “zero communication.” (A Vornado representative wasn’t immediately available for comment.)

Once the mall, which used to house some 130 stores, is fully redeveloped, it will no longer have any internal corridors, but rather be occupied a smaller number of retailers taking up more space. Last month a number of tenants for the mall were confirmed, including T.J. Maxx and Michaels.

Tony, another resident of the building who asked that his last name not be used, wants to be spared the bowling alley, and said that he hopes Vornado focuses on smaller retailers. “It will be in the best interest of the Georgetown community to support the establishments that make this area unique,” he said in an email. “A bowling alley is a very generic, suburban venue which would bring unwanted crowds and noise to an otherwise calm neighborhood.”

According to Georgetown Patch, work on the interior of the mall could be completed within 10 months to a year.