BELFAST - In the years before Belfast's celebrated downtown revival, a common refrain among longtime residents was that what the city really needed was a bowling alley.

Several years and one downtown revival later, the city may be about to get one.

Belfast officials recently got word that ALL PLaY Family Entertainment Center in Waldoboro has taken a option to buy the former Jed's Restaurant property on Searsport Avenue.

The plan, according to ALL PLaY owner Don Benson, is to convert the old restaurant to an entertainment center like the company's facility in Waldoboro. Early plans show eight lanes of candlepin bowling, a redemption arcade, pool tables, a cafe and private party space.

"That's what we're hoping to do," Benson said on Thursday, adding, "We still need to get the financing and the city approval."

The Jed's property has been vacant for several years. It is currently owned by Ken Wentworth, whose efforts to revive the property in 2009 sparked a major debate over the city's parking requirements.

ALL PLaY has submitted rough drawings to the city's planning office that would located the new facility entirely within the existing building. The drawings also indicate a large overflow parking lot.

A brief suggestion among members of the Planning Board on July 10 suggested that there are unlikely to be major issues with permitting. The application, however, will get an official review at the board's next meeting, July 24. 

Benson estimated the cost of buying and converting the former restaurant building at around $700,000. He qualified the figure saying he is still talking with his bank and getting prices from contractors, but if his resume is any indication, he has a good idea of what's involved.

During his 25 years with the U.S. Air Force, Benson managed recreational facilities for soldiers. After he retired, he took a job with MBNA and managed the company's bowling alley at Point Lookout Resort in Northport. In the years after MBNA departed, Benson said he was dropped and rehired enough times that he grew wary of relying upon a parent company. He subsequently opened ALL PLaY.

"I hate putting my heart and soul into something and not getting anything out of it," he said.

Asked why he chose Belfast as a potential branch location, Benson, who lives in Lincolnville, said he's watched the city's economy growing in the past few years.

"I know that people want something [like ALL PLaY] up in Belfast," he said. "I'm hoping with my good credit and retired military status we can make it work."

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Ethan Andrews can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com