Dick’s House of Sport proposed for Amherst Commerce Park near future Costco

Dick’s House of Sport would open a 120,000-square-foot store alongside an 18,000-square-foot fenced playing field with a track, bleachers and a scoreboard. Other House of Sport locations feature indoor climbing walls, putting greens, virtual golf bays, food and nutrition markets, batting cages and a “House of Cleats” specialty footwear center.

The concept plays on a major shift toward experiential retail to bring foot traffic back to brick-and-mortar stores after losing sales to internet retailers such as Amazon.

New services, promising to help customers with their golf swing, repair gear and events such as yoga classes and community sports games are a key draw. There is also space for customers to try out merchandise and consult with experts on staff.

The first House of Sport in the country opened near Rochester in Victor in 2021. It uses its outdoor sports field to host classes and community sports teams, and converts it to an ice rink in the winter.

The project is proposed for space along the I-290 behind The Boulevard retail complex at a site being developed by Benderson Development. It comprises part of the existing Amherst Commerce Park that previously was acquired by Benderson. It includes consolidated offices for KeyBank.

In 2015, Dick’s relocated to the Boulevard Mall from a location on Meyer Road in Amherst. It was built on the site of the mall’s former food court, which was demolished. The proposed site for Dick’s House of Sport is just one mile north of the mall site.

In addition to the Dick’s House of Sport near Rochester, there are locations in Tennessee and Minnesota.