New trampoline park set to open in Cicero soon

CICERO — Trampoline and game enthusiasts will soon have a new place to play. 

A new trampoline park, called Get Air Syracuse, is under construction at Circle Road Plaza on Frontage Road in Cicero — in the space where Roberts Office Furniture Concepts Inc. was previously located.

The park, developed by the company Get Air Syracuse LLC, is expected to be completed and open for business sometime between late March and early April. That was the estimate as of Feb. 24, according to Ryan Wicks, the Get Air Syracuse general manager.

Wicks — a Syracuse native who says his background is in customer service with more than 15 years of managerial experience in the restaurant industry — is currently in the process of hiring between 30 and 35 employees to staff the trampoline park. Most positions will be part time, except for three or four full-time positions for the assistant manager and shift leaders, he says.

The new park is part of a larger expansion into the state by Utah–based Get Air Management, the parent company of Get Air Syracuse. Get Air trampoline parks are planned for Buffalo, Rochester, and possibly Utica, according to Van Stapley, a managing member of SI International, LLC, an investment group (also based in Utah) that is the majority owner of Get Air Syracuse. Stapley says Get Air Syracuse is being funded internally; no line of credit is being used. He would not disclose the project’s costs.

SI International partners with companies that are trampoline-park innovators, says Stapley — companies such as Trampoline Parks LLC, which is building the Get Air Syracuse park. Stapley was formerly the vice president of Trampoline Parks LLC.

He says Get Air Management’s expansion into upstate New York has to do with the market he sees here. “We must believe the [upstate] market is going to be a phenomenal market,” he says, adding that he sees the winter weather as a benefit, since people are looking for something to do [inside].

More than 40 Get Air trampoline parks are either planned, under construction, or open across the U.S.

The Cicero facility

Get Air Syracuse has about 36,000 square feet of indoor floor space, says Wicks. It will boast many different games and features — some that use trampolines and some that don’t. They include Archery Tag, which features foam-tipped arrows; pickleball, a game similar to badminton and tennis; a basketball dunk area with trampolines, as well as a regular basketball half-court; and rock-wall climbing.

The park will have four ninja courses (a type of obstacle course) that will range in difficulty from “beginner” to “extremely difficult.” An arcade game area is on tap, featuring a number of active games such a foosball, ping pong, table hockey, and shuffleboard, as well as a large “kiddie” section for young children.

A mezzanine is being built, which Wicks says will be a lounge for adults, possibly with televisions and coffee. Stapley also sees the mezzanine as a space to bring in DJs, have birthday parties, and for teenagers to spend time in the evenings. “We’re going to be a family-oriented center,” says Wicks. “We’re going to have something for everybody.”

Stapley says the Get Air Syracuse building is one of the best he has seen during his time developing trampoline parks across the country. The high ceiling and large floor plan affords more flexibility than most Get Air locations. He intends to use that flexibility by constantly rotating different features in and out of the park to keep it fresh.

The Sky Zone Indoor Trampoline Park on Erie Boulevard in DeWitt, which opened last year, projects to be Get Air’s immediate competition. But Wicks notes that any place that offers indoor recreation or indoor activities is a competitor, including laser parks and Wonderworks at Destiny USA.

Wicks says some pricing details are still being ironed out, but set in stone are one-hour and two-hour rates for $16 and $25, respectively. Those passes include the use of the arcade area, basketball half-court, and other non-trampoline features, he says. There is a two-hour limit for playing on the trampolines for injury-liability reasons, says Wicks. He also wants to give customers the option of using non-trampoline sections of the park for a lower price.

Wicks says a gaming room is being built as well, with video-game consoles, the use of which will be priced independently from the rest of the park.

In the summer months, he plans to make use of the roughly 15,000 to 20,000 square feet of outdoor space beside the building that Get Air Syracuse has fenced off. Wicks says he is teeming with ideas for how to use the space. “Barbecues, ice-rink, the possibilities are unlimited as to what we can do,” he says. “I don’t turn down any ideas.” 

Stapley would also like to take the ninja courses outside, and try out some water-based courses.

Wicks is emphatic about getting the park involved in the community. “Anything that will help the community to grow, we’re all about.” He says he has set into motion a first-responders night for Cicero–area firefighters, EMTs, and police. Wicks wants to make it a yearly event and, depending on the success, expand it to include first responders throughout the county.

He says he has also been in contact with some area nonprofits and charitable organizations, with the hope of utilizing the park’s facilities to host weekly fundraisers. On top of that, Wicks wants to build a network with other local businesses. “We’re going to be involved 100 percent locally with our community,” he says.