Work on the Tri-Cities' first Dave & Buster's is moving forward inside the former Sears and JoAnn Fabric & Craft space at Kennewick's Columbia Center mall, with the restaurant, bar and arcade expected to open in August 2027. City records for the project at 1321 N. Columbia Center Blvd. were updated earlier this month, and the interior demolition appears to be done, the Tri-City Herald reported Oct. 19.
A mechanical permit worth more than $500,000 went through the week before, the Herald reported, as work shifts from tearing out the old store to building the new "eatertainment" venue.
Dave & Buster's filed a formal change-of-use application for the vacant storefronts on April 17, a city spokeswoman confirmed to the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business. Rooster Development officials had first submitted plans for the project to Kennewick in February, telling city planners they expected to begin construction in November and open to the public in August 2027, according to the Herald.
Plans indicate the venue would occupy more than 29,000 square feet. Two figures have been reported for the project's cost, and they measure different things: the Herald reported the city is reviewing an application from Dave & Buster's to invest $8 million in the location, while the Journal reported that plans put the demolition and remodeling cost at $6.85 million.
Site preparation began this summer. Nearly $1 million in work is planned to return the former store to "cold dark shell" condition, the Journal reported, with the exterior and mall entrances staying in place and a new exit door and sidewalks added at the front of the building. The Herald reported that a separate demolition permit valued at $125,000 covers tearing out the JoAnn space, which JoAnn built out in the former Sears store before moving there in 2023.
Dave & Buster's officials told the city the venue is designed for a maximum occupancy of 1,000 to 1,200, with a bar and restaurant on one side and the arcade on the other, four exits and about 130 employees, the Herald reported. The closest existing Dave & Buster's to the Tri-Cities is in Spokane Valley, which opened in 2025, according to the Journal.
Sears closed its Columbia Center store in 2019 amid its bankruptcy. JoAnn closed in 2025 after its own bankruptcy, not long after relocating its Kennewick store to the mall.
Sources
- Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business: Game on: Dave & Buster's planning Tri-Cities location, April 23, 2026
- Tri-City Herald: So long JoAnn. Demo for $8M Dave & Buster's ready to begin at Tri-Cities mall, Aug. 10, 2026 (also syndicated on Yahoo News)
- Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business: Real Estate & Construction Briefs (Site prep begins for Kennewick Dave & Buster's), Sept. 10, 2026
- Tri-City Herald: Food trucks moving + Tri-Cities Dave and Buster's update and more, Oct. 19, 2026
- Tip (not a news source): @heykimfeliciano Instagram Reel
