Gatti-Town Closing

The economy is forcing a popular pizza and arcade business in the metro to shut down.  Tomorrow, Gatti-Town on Lake Harbour Drive in Ridgeland will close.

The general manager tells us the number of customers dropped 40-percent since opening four years ago.

"It’s been a difficult decision," recalls Virgil Salvo.

Salvo says they did everything they could to keep Gatti-Town from closing.

"The size of the building and operation is what caught is with us over the years," explains Salvo.

There were also fewer school fieldtrips and birthday parties.

"Everyone’s tightening up a little bit and not as much money is going around now.  And, that's what really led to the downfall of the business," continues Salvo.

They also stopped booking group reservations.

"We had some cancellations we had to make for some school fieldtrips that were booked for next year," adds Salvo.

Eleven-year-old Madison Smith is sad Gatti-Town is closing, and she plans to make the most out of her last visit.

“I really like the food," claims Smith.

Now that Gatti-Town is closing, Smith will have to find other places to go.

"I think Gatti-Town is a whole lot better than Chuck E. Cheese because I like how they have more games, and to me it's just more fun," expresses Smith.

Susie East takes her grandchildren to Gatti-Town often.

"Sometimes the better places are the ones to go," East tells News Channel 12.

East says she has a lot of memories from her favorite family entertainment center.

"It brings out the kid in me and puts a smile on my face to see them happy and enjoying something that is good, clean fun," adds East.

Makeaba Latiker says her two boys were upset when she told them about Gatti-Town closing.

"We had some cards we needed to redeem so we wanted to get our last day of play," says Latiker.

Gatti-Town will open from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Tuesday and will close its doors for good at the end of the day.

The Gatti-Town in Hattiesburg will remain open.  Card balances at the Ridgeland location will be transferred to the Hattiesburg location.  The Ridgeland location no longer redeems tickets for prizes.  The general manager at the Gatti-Town in Hattiesburg tells us the facility is performing well and is not going anywhere.