One of the reasons why Joseph Bonds became a small business owner nearly three years ago in Wheeling was to encourage his son to be more active.
That is why Tripp’s Fun Zone opened in April 2018 at the Elm Terrace Shopping Plaza in Elm Grove., and Joseph Bonds is pleased to report his evil plan worked.
“There was a day when I saw Tripp watching YouTube to see other kids play, and that made me think of this place,” Bonds said. “That’s why I started something that would keep him a little active rather than what he was doing. I thought for sure it would get him off the iPad for a little while, and it’s worked very well.
“Tripp loves this place, so when I tell him he can come, he never turns me down,” he said. “He really has a blast here, and he uses every piece of equipment we have put in here so far.”
Bouncy Bouncy
Tripp’s offers a per-visit price of $9.35 for children 6 months to 10 years old, and for an additional child, only $6.54. Bonds closes the Fun Zone for private parties, too, for $189. The hours of operation, though, are now limited because of the impact of the pandemic.
The Fun Zone is closed on Mondays, but it is open Tuesdays from 3-7 p.m., and from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesdays through Fridays. Private parties can be booked any Saturday or Sunday.
The crowds, however, have drastically changed since March.
“It started out very well,” Bonds said. “But since the pandemic began, we’ve been pretty slow even though we are always cleaning everything during the day. We did have to shut down for about four months because of the restrictions, and that really hurt. We used to do around five birthday parties per week, and these days it’s only one or two each week.
“When we had open play, we used to get a pretty nice crowd in here, and the parents were really happy we were here, especially during the colder months of the year,” he said. “These days it’s between two and 10 kids per day, and that’s really slow for us. People are being careful, and I completely understand that because my son and I are really careful, too.”
Rare in Wheeling
There are numerous climbing adventures and bounce houses inside the 2,000 square feet at Tripp’s Fun Zone, and Bonds selected the slot location on the east side of the Elm Terrance complex because of visibility and ample parking at the shopping center.
Nearby businesses include a Hallmark store, Dollar General, and Elm Grove Subs.
“I looked around a good bit before deciding on the location, and this place seemed pretty perfect because it’s the right size for what I wanted to do, and we’ve had some pretty good crowds in here, so it’s been a good thing to have so much parking,” Bonds explained. “Plus, a lot of people come here to Elm Terrace on a daily basis, and a lot of people have told me that they found it because they came for something else.
“Before Covid, we usually had a very big crowd each day, so it’s my hope now that the vaccinations have started and a lot of kids are back in school, that more people will feel safe to come back,” he added. “There aren’t too many places in the Valley like this one; that’s for sure.”
