Business & Tech

Former Beer Distributors Hope for 'Spectacular' SportsHouse

The Maita family gives the history of how a beer distributor entered the sports business.

What do you do with an with large former beer warehouses?

For Marcus Maita and his family, converting the space into is the answer. The developers received an , but await a final decision from the Board of Supervisors on Dec. 13.

But this decision required a year and a half. During this process, the land remained empty, devoid of the many trucks, employees and kegs of beer that had been funneling in and out of the warehouse 24 hours a day since 1985, according to owner Marcus Maita.

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“It was bittersweet selling the business,” Maita said of the beer distribution at 3151 Edison Way.

Maita explained that the beer distribution industry has become high consolidated.

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He and his family were stuck in a lawsuit in 2009 in which MillerCoors and DBI were trying to “force them out,” Maita said.

Ultimately the judge ruled that California law does not allow successor-suppliers like MillerCoors to terminate distributors or cancel agreements.

Maita said he and his family came out the victors of the various rulings, but the lingering concern of the giant distributors’ influence caused Maita and his family to close the business.

“We prevailed but we didn’t want to have to keep looking over our shoulder,” Maita said.

So the brainstorming process began, and Maita and his brother-in-law, Brian, teamed up with Joe Fernando, the former owner of the billiards and volleyball club The Players in Belmont.

They envisioned an indoor complex where children could take refuge in sports programs and adults could enjoy a new recreational space as well.

 

Turning a Beer Warehouse into a Sports Complex

The lot and buildings will remain as they are, but they were gutted out to make way for the soccer fields and baseball fields, Maita said. Gone are the massive 15,000 square foot refrigerators that housed the Maita beer.

Because the building infrastructure is already in place, Maita estimates that the actual building of the indoor fields and café and arcade area will only take two and a half to three months.

The wooden beams on the roof will be removed to make way for tresses. The steel door that rotated open to allow the semi-trucks to roll in will be replaced with glass doors for a grand entrance into the facility.

The buildings, though structurally untouched, will receive a makeover with new landscaping and painting.

But a former beer warehouse does lend some nifty characteristics to an indoor sports complex, according to Maita. The insulation on the roof that used to control the temperature for the beer will now regulate the playing fields area for the perfect temperature.

“We hope people can see the big picture,” said Maita, aware of some concerns that neighbors had.

“It’s going to be spectacular.”


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