Inn of the Mountain Gods reports progress at Rocket City Family Fun Center, cites liquor-license tax lien delaying opening

Inn of the Mountain Gods representatives told the Alamogordo City Commission on Tuesday they have completed major repairs and equipment replacements at the Rocket City Family Fun Center and are aiming for a soft opening in early July, but said an unresolved tax lien against the site’s liquor license is preventing final steps to open the venue.

Why it matters: The Family Fun Center occupies a city asset and is slated to provide recreation, food service and event‑space programming that could affect downtown activity, transit routing and local employment. The presentation described tangible investments and an operating plan — and made clear the project’s near‑term timeline depends on state liquor‑license clearance.

What presenters said: An Inn of the Mountain Gods executive (presented at the meeting as the facility’s chief operating representative) said his team took possession of the building and completed deep cleaning, rewiring, plumbing repairs, lane‑conditioner and pin‑setter work for the bowling lanes, installation of an RO water system for the kitchen, repairs to the ball returns, and purchase of new pins, bowling balls and shoes. He listed deliveries due June 30 (700 pins, 113 bowling balls, 142 pairs of shoes) and said the bowling pin setters would be repaired and operational by June 26. He said a new surveillance system and a modern “tap to play” card kiosk for arcade games are being installed and that staff hiring and intensive training are underway.

The Inn’s representative said the laser‑tag system has roughly 400 hours of paid play remaining and that a full laser‑tag system upgrade was estimated at about $86,000; the team expects to use the remaining paid hours while the city and operator consider whether to replace or repurpose the large laser‑tag space.

On funding and investment, the presenter said Inn of the Mountain Gods has spent “a little over $207,000” to date on repairs and startup items and that additional investments were likely for later renovations. He said the Inn would prefer to operate under the existing liquor license assigned to the property but discovered a tax‑related encumbrance tied to the prior tenant. On Tuesday the presenter said the city’s consultant Marcus (a tax consultant) told them that if the outlet pays “a little over $8,000” to clear the assessment the liquor license could be released; the Inn reported it had submitted the payment and would seek confirmation the next morning. The presenter said a soft opening could occur as early as July 7 and a grand opening July 11 if the license is cleared and pending remaining operational items.

Officials and tribal partner: The commission also welcomed Mescalero Apache Tribe President Padilla, who the mayor introduced; leaders from Inn of the Mountain Gods introduced Johnny Adams as the Rocket City general manager on site and said most of the operational staff are local hires.

Operational details: Inn representatives said they had 95% of staffing from Alamogordo and that technicians and managers are in place and training. A local general manager and technicians have been training on lane maintenance and pin‑setter upkeep; the Inn said U.S. Bowling Congress (USBC) lane certification inspection was scheduled for July to allow sanctioned league play this fall. Staff also said they plan to list the facility’s restaurant on DoorDash shortly after opening.

What the city said: The commission and city staff described efforts to coordinate with state agencies (Taxation and Revenue Department and Alcohol Beverage Control/RLD) and said staff had been pursuing paperwork and clarification for the liquor license assignment. The city manager told the commission she had been in touch with a consultant and that the city had been pressing the state; she said if the payment cleared the state system the next morning she would provide an update to commissioners.

Ending: Inn representatives and the tribal president emphasized community benefits and the operator’s readiness to open. They asked the city to continue working with state officials to release the liquor license so the venue can begin operations and expand to full programming this fall.