Indoor playground and adventure park Lava Island to make Illinois debut in Kildeer
A former Best Buy store in Kildeer will become home to the first Lava Island Indoor Play Oasis in Illinois.
The relative newcomer to the family entertainment scene opened its first location in Aurora, Colorado, in 2018 and is in a growth mode, envisioning dozens of locations across the country.
A new facility is opening Friday in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, with two others to follow around Thanksgiving in Rock Hill, Missouri, and Alpharetta, Georgia.
An official date hasn’t been set, but the Kildeer location in the Quentin Collection shopping center at Route 12 and Quentin Road is expected to open later this year.
Lava Island is a family-owned indoor playground/adventure park for families with children from infants to age 12. It’s described as a “screen free” environment for families to play and connect.
The parks feature large-scale multilevel play structures, trampolines, foam pits, balance beams, climbing challenges and air bag jumps, according to Mandi Delgado, marketing and events coordinator for new parks.
Hand-painted, themed party rooms — Superhero, Princess, Space, Jungle and Underwater — offer immersive birthday experiences, she added.
At 41,000 square feet, the Kildeer facility will be among the largest locations, she added.
Kildeer’s sense of community, family-focused neighborhoods and proximity to shopping make the village a good fit, according to Delgado.
“We look for locations where families can easily gather, play and enjoy safe indoor fun all year round, and Kildeer perfectly matches that vision,” Delgado said.
She said the company was excited about expanding into Illinois and is exploring other locations in the Chicago area and Midwest.
Wu's House, an Asian restaurant with six south suburban locations including Naperville, also will be opening in the Quentin Collection center, said Michael Talbett, chief village officer.
Best Buy had been the village's top sales tax producer before it closed in early 2024. A furniture store occupied the space awhile but didn’t match the revenue.
Village officials considered a ballot question to increase the local sales tax rate by 0.5% to 8% but didn’t follow through.
Talbett said an amusement tax was enacted that will apply to ticket sales for Lava Island as well as tickets for The Picklr, an indoor pickleball facility coming to the former Art Van furniture.
That space is in the Kildeer Village Square Shopping Center to the south of the Quentin Collection on Route 12 and Plum Grove Road just north of Lake-Cook Road.