Day’s Bowl-A-Dome rolls into a new era

Rich Palzewic

Staff

August 4, 2025

WAUSAU – After a Feb. 15 fire significantly damaged its building, Day’s Bowl-A-Dome (1715 W. Stewart Ave.) is back open following an extensive cleanup and remodel.

Day’s President/Owner Dean Day said he couldn’t ask for more in getting the long-standing Wausau bowling alley – which dates to the mid-1940s – fixed up and back in business.

“The community has been amazing,” he said. “We’ve been a part of this community for almost 80 years, and we have always supported our community through different nonprofits like the Boys and Girls Club, churches, schools, etc., but… since reopening, the community has paid us back tenfold. In July, [we made] basically double what we normally do.”

Dean said after the dust – and smoke – settled, it never once crossed his mind to not reopen.

“I wanted to turn a negative situation into a positive situation,” he said. “During the first week and a half after the fire, walking through the building, we still had to wear a mask to minimize the amount of smoke in the air [we breathed in]. That was a hard time, no doubt – both physically and mentally.”

Dean said he has worked at Day’s for more than five decades.

“I was born to do this kind of work because I love people,” he said. “I’m in the business of making people smile, and when I see people smiling and laughing… I can’t get enough of it, and I can’t imagine not doing this.”

The work begins

Dean said after the February fire, Day’s was closed for four and a half months.

“We had to go through every inch of the building,” he said. “I can’t thank NorthStar Restoration Services and the many subcontractors enough for all they’ve done in getting us back up and running.”

As one could imagine, Dean said they had to replace much of the equipment inside the center.

“That included every computer, the automatic scoring system, the 27 TVs and all the refrigeration units,” he said. “The fire was in the back workshop area that was home to all the spare parts, tools, rubber belts, etc. That room was completely destroyed. In some cases, [it got so hot that] things melted.”

Though the fire was contained to the back room, Dean said it still caused extensive smoke damage to the entire building.

“The smoke went through the entire building, and that was what created such a long delay in the clean-up process,” he said.

Dean said 200 people were in the building for a private event at the time of the fire at 9 p.m.

“They had just gotten done with their meal and went out to start bowling – then they could see and smell the smoke,” he said. “We got everyone out of the building safely. The fire department is only a few minutes from here, so they got here quickly. By the time they got here, the building was completely engulfed in smoke – toxic, black, sooty smoke.”

Dean said after working a long day on Feb. 15, he had left the building, only to come back when reports of the fire emerged.

“I got back here before the fire department even got into that room from the outside to put the fire out,” he said. “I ran right to the fire and opened up one of the doors that went into that room. That was a bad idea because I was just adding oxygen to the fire.”

Armed with a fire extinguisher, Dean said he knew it was a lost cause and a bad idea to head into the inferno.

“I got down low to the ground, but I knew if I went in there, I wasn’t coming out,” he said. “Just as I went outside and around to the back of the building, the fire department pried that door open to the workshop, and the flames shot out. I had my camera in my hands and was videotaping but only got five seconds into it. I simply put my head down and had the worst feeling ever.”

Turning a negative into a positive

Dean said once they began going through the restoration process, he felt it was a good opportunity to make some upgrades as well.

“The insurance was just going to take care of getting it back to where it was,” he said. “Knowing we were going to be closed for so long, I wanted to make a bunch of improvements. I wanted people to come back and not just say, ‘Wow, it’s really clean, and I don’t smell smoke.’ I wanted the ‘wow factor’ when they came back. That’s what we’ve gotten since reopening [in July].”

Dean said Day’s is known for its domed ceiling – hence the name of the bowling center – so he wanted to give that portion of the building a makeover.

“They had to set up a huge scaffolding for the workers to get up that high to clean it and repaint it – it was so stained from the smoke,” he said. “For decades, it was a gray color, but after the workers got a base coat of paint on it, they asked me what color I wanted. I told them ‘flat white.’ It really brightened things up.”

Seizing the opportunity for another improvement, Dean said he invested in some long-throw projectors and set two of them up to shine on the dome above the bowlers.

“They are 7,000 lumen projectors, so it has a very clear picture,” he said. “They’re 20-foot screens of sporting events, music videos on weekends for the kids, etc. It looks like a 20-foot square TV set.”

Dean said he’s glad he was talked into getting a “Cadillac” insurance plan by his agent more than two decades ago.

“I know some business owners might say, ‘I don’t want to pay too much for insurance premiums because I’ll never use it,’” he said. “With my plan, loss of business income continued, all my employees earned their entire paychecks for the whole time, and I had 100% replacement cost on everything. Without that kind of coverage, yes, things would have been a whole lot different.”

Day’s gone by

The story of Day’s goes back 78 years, Dean said, when his grandfather, Hobart, and his dad, Russell, built the center in 1947.

“My dad came back from World War II and ran a home insulation business for a while,” he said. “He and my grandpa got hooked on bowling in a small center in the area and decided they wanted to build their own center – that’s how it took place.”

Dean said he was basically born and raised at Day’s.

“I was definitely a part of that center,” he said. “The middle school was only two blocks away, so after school, I’d walk over and bowl for a couple of hours before my dad left for the day and would take me home.”

As he got to the age of 15, Dean said he began working more at the bowling alley.  

“I’d check bowlers in and out, handle rental shoes and do pin chasing,” he said. “My senior year in high school, I had enough credits to graduate midterm, so I started working full-time in December ’76.”

Tragically, Dean said his grandpa died nine years into the business in 1956.

“My dad was on his own for quite some time,” he said. “I got to work by his side – learning the pro shop business and how to fix equipment for bowlers. Everything progressed, and we went through many remodels over the years, including a major improvement about 30 years ago.”

Dean said he took over ownership several decades ago before his father passed away in 2001.

“About 20 years ago, I knew [to progress forward], we had to put in a kitchen and start serving food,” he said. “The kitchen has grown exponentially over the years. Everything feeds off itself. Between the bowling, the bar and the kitchen, I’d say each of those segments is about 33% – it’s beautiful.”

Dean said his parents were always happy with the improvements he made.

“It was my dad’s baby, too, so when I made improvements, he enjoyed that,” he said.

Keeping up with the times

Dean said at one time, Day’s had leagues seven days per week – but, as the years have passed, he said that’s no longer the case.

“In the 1970s, we’d have two shifts of bowlers packed at night, seven days per week,” he said. “That was a long time ago, and things changed. All of a sudden, you had Mom and Dad working, so their time was limited.”

Though the numbers are down, Dean said Day’s still does very well with its leagues.

“Nationwide, a lot of centers have closed down across the country in the last 20-25 years,” he said. “I think there are many factors to that. It depends on your location and the demographics in your area, but most of all, it depends on how much the centers are willing to invest into upgrading.”

Dean said that’s where he feels Day’s separates itself.

“That’s where I’ve seen the biggest fault of centers that have closed – they let their center run down,” he said. “And, they haven’t changed with the times. Over the years, we’ve constantly made upgrades to our equipment, our scoring, our lanes and kept the place really clean and treated the bowlers well.”

Dean said to remain competitive, Day’s “has rolled with the changes.”

“We have a lot of corporate business parties, Christmas parties and we’ve hosted weddings, funerals, birthday parties, etc.,” he said. “We also do a lot of family-oriented bowling outings, whether it be youth birthday parties or families coming together to bowl on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon.”

Dean said he also likes to replace Day’s rental shoes every year or two.

“I’ve seen some rental shoes [in other places] that look like they are 30 years old,” he laughed. “I don’t want to charge someone to put on 30-year-old rental shoes. It might sound trivial, but [new rental shoes] are paid for in no time, so I want to give my customers a nice pair of shoes to wear. That goes for bowling balls, too – we have a nice selection.”

Finding a niche

Dean said a lot of little things add up to big things, which is a good example of why Day’s has stood the test of time.

“Wausau itself has a population of about 40,000, but the metro area – Schofield, Rothschild, Weston, Rib Mountain, etc. – has about 175,000 people,” he said. “In about the last 20 years, we’ve had two 24-lane centers close up and get torn down. We had another 12-lane center close because they built a mall downtown [that is no longer there], so we’re one of the last bowling centers in this area.”

Dean said there is a big center in Weston – 60 lanes – and another small one in Schofield – 12 lanes.

“The one in Weston does a lot of really big statewide events,” he said. “It’s a big, beautiful center that is very well run, which I like to see because it helps the sport. We have 14 lanes at Day’s.”

Because the center was built in the ’40s, Dean said there is no room for expansion.

“I’m landlocked here,” he said. “I have some really cool aerial pictures of the place, which I didn’t even know they did aerial pictures back then. I think Wilbur Wright probably snapped the camera.”

When the center was first built, Dean said it was on the outskirts of town.

“There was nothing but farmland around the area and very few houses,” he said. “Now, it’s like the middle of the city. We have hotels and restaurants, and I’m surrounded by businesses. We sit on an acre and a half, but there is no room for expansion. Besides that, a small business equals small problems, while a big business equals big problems.”

Dean said he’d rather have Day’s 14 lanes filled all the time compared to having more lanes and having half of them sit empty.

“We even do really well in the summertime compared to most bowling centers,” he said. “We have long winters here, so in the summer, people spend a lot of time outside. I think our location helps, too.”

Now and into the future

Dean, 66, said he has no plans of slowing down.

In fact, he said he can’t wait to see what’s in store for the iconic bowling alley.

“I’m probably going to do this until I drop,” he laughed. “Again, I can’t imagine getting up in the morning or lying in bed before I get up and not thinking about what I have to accomplish today. This keeps me going, and I look forward to coming in daily.”

As of now, Dean said he doesn’t have a solid succession plan.

“Though I currently don’t have a succession plan, I have an incredible group of employees, many of whom have been here for 10, 15 or 20 years,” he said.

Growing up at the alley and bowling for a good 50-plus years, Dean said he’s gotten to be a pretty good bowler – still bowling today – and has bowled four perfect games during his career.

“I’ve got one guy who works for me who has bowled about 40 perfect games,” he said.

For more information on Day’s Bowl-A-Dome, find it on Facebook or visit daysbowl.com.