IRVINE — Unlike a traditional office or retail tenant improvement, when it came to designing and building the Holey Moley Golf Club and Hijinx Hotel immersive entertainment venues, Gray West Construction’s Chris Ashton said there’s a major fundamental difference.
“Experience,” Ashton told the Business Journal. “With retail, you’re selling shoes or clothes. Here, every decision is about creating an experience people will remember.”
The Santa Ana-based company completed in December one of its most memorable construction projects for Australian client Funlab at Irvine Spectrum Center.
Holey Moley Golf Club is a miniature golf course that Ashton calls “putt-putt golf on steroids.” Along with Hijinx Hotel, an interactive social experience, the two occupy 40,000 square feet of a former 24 Hour Fitness near California Pizza Kitchen and Regal Irvine Spectrum.
So far, the design and concept have been well received.
“It’s very rewarding,” Ashton said. “Seeing families go in there and have fun after everything we’ve built, that’s really what it’s all about.”
Gray West is one of 29 companies featured in this week’s Tenant Improvement List (see page 18), which ranks firms by the dollar value of projects conducted in Orange County in 2025.
Gray West ranked No. 25 with TI improvements totaling $14.5 million, down 17% from the prior year.
Rise of Experiential Retail
The Irvine Spectrum project comes as Southern California’s retail landscape continues to change.
No longer satisfied with just shopping, today’s modern consumers want an experience at their local malls and shopping centers.
A study by Avison Young found that while traditional shopping centers are struggling, retail centers that focus on entertainment, dining and fitness are attracting more visitors and doing well.
“The market is bifurcated, with strong performance in prime shopping districts and experience-driven destinations, while outmigration and affordability pressure local demand and create uneven performance across submarkets,” Avison Young officials said in its Q1 report.
The Irvine location of Holey Moley and Hijinx Hotel is one of several venues Gray West has built for Funlab as the Australian entertainment company expands across the U.S.
The miniature golf course has 27 themed holes, a full-service restaurant, several bars, private event rooms and many other themed areas. Some holes pay tribute to Southern California landmarks like the Santa Monica Ferris wheel and the La Brea Tar Pits.
Hijinx Hotel, which isn’t a hotel, occupies the rest of the space, with several rooms spread across the first and second floors.
Visitors enter through a hotel-style lobby on the ground floor, which includes a bar and three private karaoke lounges.
A grand staircase and elevator take guests to the second floor, where 15 challenge rooms feature interactive games for groups of 2 to 6 people. There’s also a speakeasy on the top floor.
The Business Journal previously reported that each Funlab location can cost between $13 million and $18 million to build out.
Challenges
Turning the former gym into a multi-level entertainment venue was much more complicated than a typical renovation, Ashton said.
The crew had to excavate sections of the floor to install a new plumbing system that could handle a commercial kitchen and larger restrooms.
They also had to strengthen the mezzanine and other parts of the building before moving forward, which delayed the project beyond the planned 36 weeks, he said.
The biggest challenge, however, came after most of the building was already done.
His team had to move huge, themed props like giant balloon displays, tall sculptures and oversized unicorns, all without damaging the finished walls, ceilings or floors.
“The logistics were unbelievable,” Ashton said. “Some of these pieces had to be installed after the finishes were already in place. You had low ceilings, completed walls and limited access, so every move had to be carefully planned.”
After the opening, Gray West invited more than 40 office employees to experience the finished attraction together.
“They don’t always get to see what they helped create,” Ashton said. “To watch them enjoy it as a team was more than rewarding.”
