A mostly mild winter has allowed construction of a Topgolf venue in West Des Moines to progress at a rate faster than anticipated and could mean opening the facility ahead of schedule, the project’s developer said.

“Unless something happens that is unforeseen, we should be able to get it open by late summer or early fall,” real estate developer Richard Hurd said. “We were originally talking about opening sometime in the late fall.

“The weather has been pretty good this winter and so, construction is moving right along.”

A building permit for the Topgolf project, located at 7655 Mills Civic Parkway, was issued last November. The Topgolf venue will include 35,534 square feet of space spread over two levels, according to a site plan.

The arc-shaped building will include 72 climate-controlled hitting bays, eight of which will be in luxury suites, the site plan showed. The building will also include a bar and dining area, a covered patio and outdoor seating.

The building permit placed the value of the building at $13 million.

Topgolf has long been a national brand Iowans have wanted in the state. The Dallas-based company announced in summer 2022 that it planned to open a venue in West Des Moines.

Hurd owns nearly 40 acres on the northwest corner of South Jordan Creek and Mills Civic parkways, a high-traffic intersection. (An average of 20,000 vehicles pass through the area on a daily basis, West Des Moines traffic studies in 2023 showed.) Nearly 5 of the acres have been developed. A convenience store and coffee shop are on one of the parcels; a wine and spirits store on another. Topgolf is being built on about 23 acres.

Hurd said he is getting interest about development of the other parcels he owns from businesses that would benefit from traffic generated by Topgolf. Among them are restaurants and general retailers, he said.

“As with a lot of retail users, they want to see Topgolf get built and get open before they commit to anything,” Hurd said. “Traffic is what a number of these retailers are interested in and it’s there from [Jordan Creek Town Center] and will be from Topgolf.”