Crews are building an indoor play park at the former JoAnn Fabrics location in east Vancouver, according to Currents. The project centers on giant dry slides for both kids and adults, a departure from the trampoline parks and toddler play cafes that have dominated indoor recreation in the region. Work is underway now, though the developer hasn’t released a timeline for completion.
What’s known about the project so far
JoAnn Fabrics left the building empty after the craft store chain’s footprint contracted nationally in recent years. Currents confirmed crews are on-site building out the space, though the report didn’t specify the exact address or square footage. A former big-box fabric store makes sense for this kind of use: the open floor plans built for aisles of merchandise translate well to indoor recreation, which needs the same ceiling heights and unobstructed space.
The park’s identity rests on dry slides, structures large enough to fit adults as well as kids, unlike most indoor play venues in the area. Currents’ report put it simply: “Get out your grippy socks.” That’s a nod to the sock-required, shoes-off setup common at indoor active-play venues, but it fits the slide-focused format especially well. No other attractions, like climbing structures, ball pits, or arcade games, came up in the report, so the slides appear to be the main draw rather than one feature among many.
Where the site fits into east Vancouver’s retail scene
JoAnn Fabrics closed stores across the country as the company went through financial restructuring, leaving vacant buildings behind in numerous markets. The east Vancouver location sat empty until this project moved in. The shift from fabric retailer to recreation venue matches what’s happening in strip malls and standalone big-box stores throughout the Portland-Vancouver area, where former apparel and specialty retailers are giving way to experience-based businesses.
A similar transformation already happened down the road. Flying Squirrel Sports confirmed it was opening a trampoline park inside the former JCPenney building at 19005 S.E. Mill Plain Blvd., converting another shuttered department store into an indoor recreation spot. That project set a precedent: when retail chains vacate large-format buildings in east Vancouver, indoor play and sports operators move in. The JoAnn’s-to-slide-park conversion follows the same pattern, turning a vacant specialty retailer’s footprint into active, family-oriented entertainment instead of another retail tenant.
How a dry-slide park differs from existing indoor play options in the area
East Vancouver already has plenty of options for kids who want to jump, climb, or run. Flying Squirrel Sports, in the former JCPenney space on Mill Plain Boulevard, offers trampoline-based activities. Nearby, Adventure Zone at Chuck E. Cheese in Vancouver combines a Superhero Playground with a Trampoline Zone. Both venues rely on bouncing and climbing as the core activity. A slide park built around giant dry slides introduces a different kind of movement, descent and speed rather than vertical bouncing, and it’s designed explicitly to include adults, not just kids.
At the other end of the spectrum, Twinkle Land Play Cafe caters to a younger, gentler crowd, pairing soft play structures with a cafe setting for toddlers and their parents. That format is built around supervised, low-impact play with food and coffee service, a contrast to the high-energy, gravity-driven slides planned for the JoAnn’s site. These existing venues, trampoline parks, superhero play zones, toddler cafes, show a market segmented by age and activity level. The new slide park looks positioned to fill a gap: a venue built around one large-scale attraction rather than a mix of smaller play elements.
What remains unconfirmed: opening date, size, and pricing
Several details haven’t been released. Currents’ report didn’t include an opening date, so families eager to visit only know that construction is currently in progress. The size of the facility, including how many slides it will have or how tall they’ll be, hasn’t been disclosed either. Pricing, whether the park will charge by session, by hour, or through membership passes common at trampoline parks, also remains unannounced. Until the developer or operator shares more, prospective visitors will have to wait for updates rather than plan specific trips.
Why indoor play venues keep expanding in Vancouver, WA and the broader Portland-Seattle corridor
Vancouver, WA sits within a regional cluster of indoor play options stretching from Portland north through Seattle and its suburbs. Roundups of indoor playgrounds count at least eight such venues across Vancouver and Portland alone, including gyms with elaborate themes like castles with dragon heads. Farther north, more than 30 indoor playgrounds and play gyms serve the Seattle and Puget Sound area, according to regional guides, with additional options in Bellevue and Lynnwood, including Twinkle Land Play Cafe locations and Bellevue Square’s reopened Kids’ Cove on the mall’s third level.
That density has as much to do with climate as with demand. Rain, wildfire smoke in the summer, and long stretches of overcast weather push families toward indoor recreation that doesn’t depend on sunshine. Retail vacancies left by chains like JoAnn Fabrics and JCPenney have supplied the real estate: large, affordable, move-in-ready spaces that indoor play operators can convert without building from scratch. The result is a steady cycle where closed big-box stores reopen as trampoline parks, slide parks, or play cafes, a pattern now repeating at the former JoAnn’s site in east Vancouver.
What to watch next as construction progresses
Currents hasn’t published a follow-up on the project’s timeline, so the next things to watch for are permitting updates, signage installation, or a formal announcement from the operator confirming an opening date. Families in east Vancouver hoping to visit should keep an eye on local outlets like Currents, since no booking information, membership details, or grand-opening date have come out yet. Flying Squirrel Sports moved fairly quickly from confirmation to opening at the former JCPenney site, so a similar pace here wouldn’t be surprising. Until the operator makes an official statement, though, construction progress is the only confirmed sign of how close this slide park is to opening.
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