Who Got the Go-Karts? How Lakewood Ranch's Entertainment District Split Up the Fun

On Professional Parkway, a 60,000-square-foot trampoline park sits between two construction sites. To the south, Backyard Social is putting up a 12,500-square-foot building with a lawn stage out back. To the north, SkyTrack Family Entertainment Center broke ground on March 10 for a three-story indoor kart track. Across Lakewood Ranch Boulevard, Life Time opened its athletic country club at 4 a.m. on October 12.

This is the entertainment district on the Sarasota County side of Lakewood Ranch. Amanda Zipperer, director of property management and leasing for Lakewood Ranch Commercial, told Your Observer the district was planned years ago as part of the community's long-term development strategy. Full buildout is expected by early summer 2027.

The district is also more coordinated than four businesses landing side by side. The operators divided the activities among themselves. They are opening in stages, though, so the district you can use this winter is a fraction of the planned one, and the missing pieces are the evening, all-ages, pay-as-you-go ones.

The menu was divided before the buildings went up

The clearest example is the karts. Michael Tucci, who owns the Lakewood Ranch Urban Air with his wife Tracey Tucci, put mini-carts for ages 7 and under in the park instead of go-karts, because he left go-karts to SkyTrack. He told Your Observer he is on friendly terms with the owners of both SkyTrack and Backyard Social. "We should all partner together," he said. "It's going to be fantastic."

Here is how the planned activities break down by venue and where each one stands as of late October 2026:

Duckpin bowling is planned for Backyard Social, and lane bowling is planned for SkyTrack. Live music is on both of their plans. Bars are planned for Backyard Social, SkyTrack and Life Time. The things that make this a place to spend an evening are concentrated in the two buildings that aren't finished.

What opened first is a club, priced like one

Life Time got to the district ahead of the evening venues, and the club is large. According to Your Observer's opening coverage, the complex is more than 180,000 square feet. It includes a resort-style beach club, cardio and strength floors, several fitness studios, a full-service spa and salon, a cafe, a bar and lounge, coworking space, Kids Academy and a chiropractic clinic. Nearly 3,000 members had signed up before opening day.

The specifics most likely to matter to anyone already playing at Lakewood Ranch courts and pools:

• Pickleball: 14 courts in all. Three are indoors on the fitness floor and 11 are outdoors, five of them covered.
• Beach club: About 50,000 square feet, with a leisure pool that has two slides and a mushroom fountain, a five-lane lap pool, cabanas and poolside service.
• Staffing: More than 200 employees now. General manager Steve Datte told Your Observer that number will rise to nearly 300 next summer "when the pool is in full swing."

The staffing line says something about timing. Life Time opened in October with its main outdoor amenity in its slow season. The club is scheduled to reach full strength in summer 2027, about the same time as SkyTrack and the projected district buildout.

Access costs more than a stop at Urban Air. As of this writing, Life Time's Lakewood Ranch membership page lists adult membership starting at $339 per month. For nonmembers, the details depend on the source. Your Observer reported that the club does not sell day passes, but anyone who spends $150 or more at the LifeSpa and salon can use the club for the rest of that day at no extra charge. Meanwhile, Life Time's Lakewood Ranch club page advertises day passes that give full-member access for one day. If you're planning a single visit, call the club first.

Life Time's vice president of corporate communications, Natalie Bushaw, told Your Observer in March that the company chose Lakewood Ranch for its "strong emphasis on quality of life, outdoor activity and family living." So far, the first building to open in the district is built around membership.

The open-door venue keeps moving down the calendar

Backyard Social is the piece that would change the district most, because it sells no memberships and no admission bundle. In March, Your Observer described a concept that is "not quite a restaurant, not quite a bar." It has no kitchen, and food trucks are parked permanently outside. The lineup announced then was Gigi Gourmet, Gigi's Chicken Coop, Gyros2Go, Lobster Chef and Box Car Cantina. Games include duckpin bowling, darts, shuffleboard, cornhole and a golf simulator. All ages are welcome until 9 p.m., and after that it is 21 and older. The lawn is planned with a tiki bar and a 6,000-square-foot stage. The building was redesigned so it can open up or close completely under air conditioning, depending on the weather.

The opening date has moved three times:

1. March 2026: Owner Mat Baum and his partner John Mann were "shooting for a mid-November opening," according to Your Observer. The foundation had not been poured yet.
2. September 2026: A spokesperson told the Bradenton Herald there was no projected opening date yet, but the company was looking at early 2027.
3. Today: Backyard Social's website says "Opening Winter 2026."

The most recent dated statement points to early 2027. The Herald also added details that weren't in the spring plans: a private event space, a built-in coffee shop, and a bigger lawn for local and national bands than the Fort Myers flagship has. If the coffee shop makes it into the final build, the building would be useful in the morning as well as after dark.

SkyTrack is aimed at the season the others skip

SkyTrack's owners describe it as a project built for the weeks when outdoor plans stop working. Co-owner Wael Alokeh, MD, and Jennifer Alokeh live in The Lake Club. They told Your Observer that one main goal was family-friendly indoor entertainment "during the dog days of summer." "Lakewood Ranch has rapidly grown and has become one of the best places to live, but there's no bowling alley or go-karts, so the idea evolved from there," Jennifer Alokeh said.

The plans are big. The 70,000-square-foot building is designed around a kart track that runs more than half a mile across three stories, with electric karts reaching 27 miles per hour. It also includes a 16-lane bowling alley, more than 85 arcade and virtual reality games, an indoor mini-golf course and an outdoor stage. The second floor is set up for corporate events. The restaurant menu will run to steaks and carpaccio, with burger-style fast-casual options elsewhere in the building. The track ships from Europe and takes about 30 days to install. The full project was expected to take about 14 months, with a projected opening of May 1, 2027. That date comes from the March reporting. On Backyard Social's evidence, a district target can slip.

What the district is this winter

This season, Urban Air covers young kids, on admission. Life Time covers pickleball, pools, workouts and coworking for members and spa guests. Nothing on Professional Parkway yet offers a casual all-ages evening with food trucks, live bands or a bowling lane. All three are planned for buildings still under construction, and the most recent dated targets for both of those buildings fall in 2027.

For a weeknight outing until then, the nearby option is Ranch Nite Wednesdays. Its current season started October 7 and runs through May 26, 2027, according to Lakewood Ranch's events calendar. By the time that season ends, SkyTrack is due to open and Life Time's beach club is set to reach its summer staffing.

If you'd like to know how these openings are shaping the streets around Professional Parkway and Lakewood Ranch Boulevard, Chiaro REALTORS® tracks this side of the Ranch closely and can walk you through the homes on the market near the district as it fills in.