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International Bowling Museum & Hall Of Fame Moving To Arlington

The International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame Board of Trustees voted unanimously this week to move the Hall of Fame from its current location in St. Louis, MO to Arlington, TX.

The new Museum and Hall of Fame will be located in a new development that will house bowling’s two national entities, the United States Bowling Congress and the Bowling Proprietors Association of America. As part of the planned move, the IBM/HF reached an agreement to sell the existing Hall and Museum structure– which is also home to the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum – and its land to the Ballpark Village partnership consisting of the St. Louis Cardinals and the Cordish Company.

The IBM/HF had two offers to move its facility. Ballpark Village presented a wonderful opportunity for the Hall of Fame to relocate within Ballpark Village in the general vicinity of its current location. In the end, however, the trustees felt it was best to honor the strong desire of the bowling industry to have the IBM/HF join the other major national bowling entities in a new consolidated headquarters at 621 Six Flags Drive in Arlington, TX.

“We are confident that by joining USBC and BPAA in the same building, we have secured the long-term future of the IBM/HF,” said Pat Ciniello, president of the IBM/HF. “It was difficult passing on the opportunity to be a part of Ballpark Village, especially because the Cardinals and Cordish Companies are innovative companies with proven track records. We are confident that Ballpark Village will be a great success and an important part of downtown St. Louis.”

“We’re very grateful to the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame for being a wonderful neighbor and partner throughout the years. We wish them well in Arlington,” said St. Louis Cardinals President Bill DeWitt III. “As for Ballpark Village, this acquisition completes our land assembly process, and represents another key milestone for the project.”

Now that the decision has been made to move to Arlington, the Hall of Fame can begin developing a new design for a state-of-the-art Hall of Fame, which will be located on the first level of the 103,000 square foot building shared by USBC and BPAA. The IBM/HF expects a much larger increase in events from the many people who will be visiting the new industry headquarters. “With the Hall moving to Arlington,” Ciniello pointed out, “the Hall of Fame now becomes the responsibility of the entire bowling industry – not just its trustees.”

John Berglund, executive director for the BPAA, said, "We are thrilled that the Hall of Fame is joining the International Bowling Campus. We appreciate the museum Board’s confidence in this project.” It is anticipated that the Hall of Fame will reopen in Arlington within 18 months.