A building that generations of Clarke County families already knew has been given a second life. Adventure Acres held its grand opening in Grove Hill on July 3, converting the former Twin Rivers Roller Rink into a family entertainment destination intended to serve Grove Hill and the surrounding communities.
The Owners and Their Vision
Owners Mike and Bri Johnson, who have children of their own, purchased the roller rink building and undertook its transformation. Their stated aim was straightforward: create a welcoming place where families can relax, have fun and build lasting memories without driving an hour or more to find something to do.
The opening weekend appears to have validated the premise.
“Seeing so many families and friends come together to laugh, skate, play games and make memories reminded us exactly why we started this journey,” the Johnsons said in a statement following the grand opening.
Why This Matters in a Small Town
Rural communities across South Alabama have watched indoor recreation options disappear over the past two decades. Roller rinks, bowling alleys and movie theaters that once anchored weekend social life in towns the size of Grove Hill have closed in large numbers nationwide, victims of rising operating costs, changing entertainment habits and shrinking populations.
The consequence is felt most acutely by families with school-age children and by teenagers, who in many small towns have few supervised places to gather. When those places vanish, young people either travel — often to Mobile, Jackson or beyond — or they do not go anywhere at all.
Reopening an existing building rather than constructing a new one also carries practical advantages. The structure is already sized and configured for the purpose, the skating surface exists, and the location is one residents can find without directions. Adaptive reuse of this kind tends to be faster and less capital-intensive than ground-up construction, which is part of why it has become a common path for small-town entertainment ventures.
Safety and Operating Policies
The Johnsons have put a structured set of policies in place, reflecting the realities of operating a venue where children skate and play.
Liability waivers. All participants are required to complete a liability waiver before skating or taking part in attractions. Guests are encouraged to complete the waiver online before arriving, which speeds up check-in considerably — a small but meaningful detail for parents managing several children on a busy Saturday.
Security measures. The venue maintains several policies designed to keep the environment orderly:
- On-site security personnel
- A strict prohibition on weapons
- Bag inspections upon entry
- Restrictions on outside food and beverages
- No pass-outs and no loitering in the parking lot
The no-loitering and no-pass-out rules are standard at family entertainment centers and exist for a practical reason: unsupervised parking lots are where most problems at such venues originate. By requiring that guests either remain inside or leave, operators keep the crowd accounted for.
Parental responsibility. Parents and guardians remain responsible for supervising their children throughout the visit, and all guests are asked to follow skating rules and staff instructions.
What to Expect on a Visit
Adventure Acres offers skating alongside games and additional attractions, positioning itself as a venue suitable for birthday parties, church and school groups, and ordinary weekend outings. For families accustomed to driving substantial distances for indoor recreation, the arithmetic of a local option — less fuel, less time in the car, more time actually doing the activity — speaks for itself.
A Small Economic Story, Too
Beyond recreation, a venue like this represents a modest but real economic contribution to Grove Hill. It puts a vacant commercial building back into productive use, creates jobs, generates sales tax revenue that stays in the county, and gives visitors from surrounding communities a reason to make the trip into town — where they may also stop for a meal or fuel.
For a community of Grove Hill’s size, those secondary effects are not trivial. Every business that draws people from outside the city limits strengthens the case for the next one.
Families planning a visit are encouraged to complete waivers online in advance and to review the venue’s policies before arriving.
Grove Hill sits at the crossroads of Clarke County in southwest Alabama and serves as the county seat, a role that places the former Twin Rivers Roller Rink at a familiar, easy-to-find address for families traveling in from Jackson, Thomasville, Coffeeville, Fulton and the surrounding communities. For many of those residents, a trip to Adventure Acres is the first time in years they have been able to reach an indoor recreation venue without committing the better part of a day to the drive.
The building itself carries local memory. Generations of Clarke County residents learned to skate, celebrated birthdays and attended weekend events at the Twin Rivers Roller Rink before changing entertainment habits and operating costs pushed many such venues across rural Alabama toward closure. Reopening the structure rather than building from scratch meant the skating surface, the footprint and the location were already in place, which shortened the path from idea to grand opening.
For families with school-age children, the return of a supervised, climate-controlled gathering place matters in practical ways. Parents can host birthday parties, church groups and school outings close to home, and teenagers gain a structured alternative to simply leaving town. The Johnsons have been explicit that the aim was to give local families a reason to stay in Grove Hill rather than logging the time and fuel required to reach Mobile or other larger population centers.
Adventure Acres also fits a broader pattern across South Alabama, where small towns have increasingly leaned on adaptive reuse and local entrepreneurship to keep community life intact. A venue that draws visitors from neighboring communities gives those guests a reason to eat, fuel up or shop while they are in town, and that secondary spending is what keeps a rural commercial district viable between the larger retail draws of the coast and the city.
Families planning a first visit are encouraged to complete the required liability waiver online before arriving and to review the venue’s operating policies, including the bag-inspection, no-pass-out and no-loitering rules that are designed to keep the parking lot and interior orderly during busy weekend sessions.