The Sacramento City Council officially designated the former Land Park Lanes bowling alley as a historic landmark this week. The change now allows the city to oversee any future renovations or demolition plans at the currently closed alley on Freeport Boulevard.
Built in the 1960s, the bowling alley shut down after a fire in February 2024. The outside may look fine, but the fire damage caused extensive water damage inside the building. A month after the fire, the owners, Bowlero Corporation, announced that the alley would not reopen, ending what many say was the city’s last operational bowling alley.
Councilmember Caity Maple represents District 5. She says the building holds personal meaning for her.
“It was actually the last operating bowling alley in the City of Sacramento,” Maple said. “And so just hugely impactful, people from all over the city would go and enjoy it. And actually for me personally, I hosted my election night party there in 2022 when I found out that I was elected to the city council.”
The outside of Land Park Lanes on July 23, 2025. The bowling alley closed after a fire in 2024 but was recently designated a historic landmark by the Sacramento City Council.The council’s unanimous vote on Tuesday means the property at 5850 Freeport Blvd. will be added to the Sacramento Register of Historic and Cultural Resources. While the designation doesn’t guarantee the site will remain a bowling alley, it does give the city power to review and potentially block future modifications that would significantly change or destroy the structure.
For many Sacramento residents, the alley represented more than just a place to bowl; it was a rare community space for marginalized communities.
Roy Arimoto, a longtime member of the Sacramento Nisei Bowling Association, spoke in support during the city council public comment.
“There was a lot of hatred towards the Japanese Americans at that time, after World War II. My parents were interned,” he said. “But the Nisei Bowling League was one place where they could get together and share some fellowship.”
The Sacramento Nisei Bowling Association was founded over 50 years ago and hosted leagues, tournaments, and social events at Land Park Lanes for decades. It served as a social club for Japanese Americans in the region, especially in the years following World War II.In recent years, the alley has become a gathering place for LGBTQ+ leagues and casual bowlers across the city.
During the council meeting, Maple emphasized the importance of recognizing sites like Land Park Lanes, which hold cultural value for communities that have been historically marginalized.
“It was a space that people really connected with, especially the surrounding community. When it burned down, it was devastating for the neighborhood,” Maple said.
City officials at the meeting stated that the alley “retains a high degree of historic integrity.”
So far, there has been no word from Bowlero Corporation on whether the space will reopen or be repurposed.
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