LUMBERTON, Texas — Construction is underway on a five-acre piece of land that would bring family fun and jobs to the city of Lumberton.
Business owner and entrepreneur Frankie Randazzo's 'Rikenjaks' location in Lumberton is years in the making and now, significant progress is being made on construction at North LHS Drive.
"This has actually been in the works for the last three or four years at this point. So for us to actually break ground, and start pouring concrete and the plumbing go in, it's an amazing moment for us," Randazzo said.
Rikenjaks will be full-service restaurant with a bar, a private event room for 50 to 80 people, and an outdoor patio and firepit with swings and washer boards.
Possibly the most exciting feature of it all, is the 18-hole miniature golf course.
This $5 million investment into the community of Lumberton and Hardin County is backed by a local bank. Randazzo and partners hope to not only bring fun, but jobs to the area.
"I think we could easily hit anywhere from 50 to 100 people from the seasonality of crawfish and other special events," Randazzo said.
He hopes this will help keep local talent from leaving and moving to bigger cities by giving them the opportunity to grow right here in Southeast Texas.
"When we have those entry level positions, kids are going to bounce to Houston, they are going to bounce to Austin, to New Orleans, and they are going to find those opportunities," Randazzo said. "If we don't encourage all these entry level positions and invest in a burger, supporting the next generation of our community."
If everything goes according to plan, the Rikenjaks team are expecting to be up and operational by October 2023.