New cornhole lounge bags a spot in Short Pump

NES Cornhole Lounge owner Catina Downey (left) and friend Trent Carpenter, who’s handling the buildout of the venue. (Charlotte Matherly photos)

The Richmond region’s first dedicated cornhole lounge is a toss or two away from opening in Short Pump.

NES Cornhole Lounge is set to launch this fall at 2443 Old Brick Road in West Broad Village. 

Owner Catina Downey leased nearly 10,000 square feet for the venue, which will host cornhole courts for casual play and tournaments, a private event space for VIP members and a lounge area with snacks, beer and wine. 

Downey, a U.S. Army veteran who also runs her own practice as a CPA, said the venture has been in the works for several years, but it wasn’t always geared toward the game. 

In the beginning stages of the idea, she’d wanted to open an event space and wedding venue but was stalled by the pandemic. 

Trent Carpenter, who Downey’s known for 16 years after he was her daughter’s basketball coach, is involved with a local cornhole league, she said, and at his suggestion, she ran the numbers and decided to take a shot at a cornhole venue.

“It’s very, very popular, more popular than I thought it was,” Downey said. “I incorporated it into the business plans … and we kicked off, and now we’re here.”

Buildout on the space is under way.

Downey said the NES acronym comes from the company’s legal name, Nicole’s Event and Meeting Space, named after Downey’s daughter. She said she hopes to get the space up and running by October or November. 

Carpenter’s construction company, Trent Construction, is building out the space. Clinger Design & Planning is the architect. Downey declined to share total startup costs for the venue.

Nine cornhole courts and the event space line the right side of the space, opposite from the kitchen, bar tables, couches and televisions.

A night of cornhole will cost $20, Downey said, with several membership tiers available: $35 a month for regular members, $50 for VIP and a tournament membership, which is $10 per member with a five-person minimum.

The venue’s mascot, Ness.

Downey said she plans to host and organize cornhole tournaments. She’ll start by inviting some local teams, like RVA Cornhole and The Body Baggers, to play so she can work out any kinks, then branch out to other tournaments.

VIP members can sign up to use the lounge to host private events and employ their own caterers, who are welcome to use the on-site kitchen, Downey said. The lounge’s core menu will consist of items such as nachos, hotdogs, wings, chips and candy, alongside a beer and wine list.

Although she’ll serve some alcohol, Downey said she wants to remain family-friendly — she’s not interested in the bar scene, she said.

“I’m not a bar, not a restaurant, so I don’t want to compete with those people and I don’t want to become that,” Downey said. “I want to become an event space, but I want to have that as a courtesy … something for my guests, when they come in, to enjoy.”

Downey said the space will be open for all ages to play. NES Cornhole Lounge will also have a mascot, a dog named Ness, who Downey said will be at the ribbon-cutting event.