Axe-Throwing Lounge Targets Pleasanton, Hits Bulls Eye

PLEASANTON, CA — A lounge featuring axe throwing for alcohol-drinking patrons cleared the Pleasanton Planning Commission Wednesday. In a nearly unanimous vote, a conditional use permit for Limitless Axes & Ales was approved, with the only dissenting vote coming from commissioner Nancy Allen, who expressed safety concerns.

The applicant, Michael Hill, who also operates Limitless Escape Games in Livermore and Stockton, said the 4,300-square-foot lounge at Valley Plaza shopping center (1809 Santa Rita Road) would feature seven axe-throwing lanes, each separated by heavy metal mesh. There would be coaches on hand to ensure safety, and each participant would be required to undergo a 10- to 15-minute training session before axe throwing, Hill said. Children under 18 could participate, if a parent or guardian were on hand, although kids under 10 would not be allowed to throw, he said.

The lounge would open seven days a week with beer, wine and food service, and would cater to families and corporate events, or groups looking for fun, like a "mom's night out. It's an awesome social activity," Hill said.

A married father of two little girls, Hill said axe-throwing lounges have gained in popularity over the last few years and are very safe places. He cited local axe-throwing pubs, including one in Berkeley and another in Daly City, and the recent opening of axe-throwing lanes at Sauced BBQ & Spirits in Walnut Creek.

Ellen Degeneres, Serena Williams, Justin Bieber ..., just a few of the celebs who've enjoyed chucking axes, Hill said.

He should know. Axe-throwing since childhood, Hill was an Eagle Scout with a Paul Bunyan Award. "The Boy Scouts are not going to let you do something that isn't safe," he said.

During Wednesday's meeting, not everyone agreed about axe-throwing's wholesomeness.

Anne Stark, who opened Tri-Valley Upholstery in the same shopping center that Limitless Axes & Ales is proposing to move into, said she was "extremely concerned about further aggression in our community." The shopping center is surrounded by residential and, according to city staff, the lounge would be conditioned in the same category as a bowling alley, pool hall or bocce ball pub.

"Linking axe throwing to bowling balls does not seem appropriate to me," Stark said.

A member of the neighborhood Danbury Park Board of Directors told the planning commission, "You have got to be kidding me. ... Alcohol and axes ... it's absolutely ridiculous."

Most commissioners did express concern over safety and lounge location, but the only additional restriction placed on Limitless Axes & Ales by the commissioners was a cap on the number of alcoholic drinks patrons could consume during axe throwing: maximum two drinks per hour per participant.

Limitless Axes & Ales would move into the same Valley Plaza suites currently occupied by Monument Car Parts, according to city staff. The lounge would only have one shared wall in the building, and so far the business on the other side has not complained, staff said.