Laser tag and adventure park is moving from Brewer to the Bangor Mall
Mar. 20—G-Force Adventures, an indoor laser tag and adventure center and bar and restaurant, has relocated from its longtime location on Wilson Street in Brewer to the Bangor Mall.
Owner Brian Plavnick announced last month that the park, formerly located at 510 Wilson St. in Brewer, would relocate to four empty storefronts in the mall. G-Force will take over storefronts located near the former Sears, where stores including Sleepers, Olympia Sports, Charlotte Russe and Chayak Crafts were formerly located.
The Brewer location is now closed, and Plavnick is in the middle of renovations in his new space in Bangor, which he says may take a few months to complete. No opening date has been set, though he hopes to be open before the end of the summer.
Plavnick said the move to the mall was precipitated by his landlord in Brewer looking to go in a new direction with the space at 510 Wilson St., after pandemic shutdowns cost Plavnick tens of thousands of dollars in revenue. While Plavnick said his landlord in Brewer was patient with him, he knew that he needed to look for new opportunities — and the Bangor Mall was the right one.
"It's a great location, and the value is better," Plavnick said. "I think we have a chance to attract some new folks to the business. It's a great opportunity."
The Bangor Mall has in recent years attracted several tenants that, a decade ago, would have been unheard of in a mall, including two theater companies, a church and a gym. With brick-and-mortar retail chains under increasing pressure from online retailers, and many mall storefronts now empty, the new tenants in the mall have tended toward local businesses offering experience-based products and services, rather than national retailers.
In his new location, Plavnick said, he plans to offer a number of the things G-Force has become known for, including laser tag, laser archery and paintless paintball, as well as expanded capacity for axe throwing and the arcade. While ball and foam pits and bounce houses remain on hold due to pandemic restrictions, Plavnick said that they'll return when it's safe to offer them again.
He also plans to offer an expanded bar and restaurant, with a full menu and bar offerings and multiple rooms for karaoke, comedy and dancing, as well as hosting professional wrestling.
"We want to be a Bangor-area entertainment center," Plavnick said. "We are constantly looking for little niches that need to be filled, so if folks want to host a game night, a Lego night, any sort of tournament, we would love to host that."
Plavnick and his wife, Kim, own an additional G-Force Adventures location in Caribou.
