By Charles Owens
For The Bluefield Daily Telegraph
Princeton — A recreational site offering miniature golf, food and life-like dinosaurs has reopened in Princeton.
The Princeton Mini Golf & Golf Sim facility is now open. The recreational area, which was formerly known as Reel Catch, is now owned and operated by the city of Princeton. New additions at the site include a golf simulator, the new Pond House restaurant, and a walking track around the pond. The dinosaurs along the golf course also have been refreshed with new paint and other additions.
The recreational site had a soft opening last week, and is now open to the public Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m and from 1 to 8 p.m. on Sunday. The Princeton Pond House, a new restaurant located on the grounds of the miniature golf course, also is now open to the public.
“So multiple dinosaurs have functioning voices and movement. So when the public visits the site they will see that.” — Princeton Economic Development Authority Executive Director Samuel Lusk on the animatronic dinosaurs at the site.
“There has been a good flow of (traffic) from the public,” Samuel Lusk, executive director of the Princeton Economic Development Authority, said. “And of course to date we’ve just had the soft opening at the pup-put. We just wanted to make sure all of our processes are in place before we do the official ribbon cutting.”
Lusk said that ribbon cutting ceremony has been set for Friday, August 21, at 1 p.m. He said the public is welcomed to participate in the ribbon cutting and grand opening celebration.
The cost for the 18 holes of miniature golf is $2. The cost to play the golf simulator is $15 for a 30 minute block, Lusk said.
The animatronic dinosaurs, which roar and move, can now be seen from the roadway, according to Lusk.
“As you drive by the complex you will be able to see the dinosaurs that were painted and improved,” Lusk said. “We believe folks will really enjoy the facility. Not only the put put but also walking around the pond.”
The dinosaurs will move and roar as people play golf.
“So multiple dinosaurs have functioning voices and movement,” Lusk said. “So when the public visits the site they will see that.”
The facility is no longer being called Reel Catch, which was privately owned. Lusk said an official name could come later, but for now it is simply being called the Princeton Mini Golf & Golf Sim.
“We haven’t decided any sort of a name for the facility yet,” Lusk said. “But as far as recreational opportunities we believe there will be good recreational opportunities as well as good eating opportunities.”
Lusk said the city of Princeton acquired the recreational area last year through a generous donation from the Preservati Family Trust Foundation.
“It’s been multiple months in the making,” Lusk said. “And of course the put-put, the pond improvements, really this portion of the complex wouldn’t be possible without the generous donation of the Preservati Family Trust Foundation.”
In the future the Princeton Mini Golf & Golf Sim site will connect with the adjoining wave pool, multi-purpose field and dog park creating a nearly 40 acre recreational site for residents to enjoy.
Read more from The Bluefield Daily Telegraph, here.
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