FLORISSANT, Mo. — An esports center in Florissant is in the middle of its first summer catering to young gamers in St. Louis region.
Fusion 314 lights up at the bottom of the James Eagan Civic Center.
A manager for the video gaming hub told 5 On Your Side that the facility was opened in September 2023 thanks to the City of Florissant, which used $200,000 in ARPA funds to load the room up with technology for youth.
The room is equipped with 20 gaming stations worth nearly $2800 each. The hardware includes monitors, keyboards, headphones, and controllers.
Each is set up to give young people a place to connect and learn.
"When me and my friends are here, we play games and it helps build our friendship," said 10-year-old Aiden Tegmeier. "It helps my anxiety. Like when I'm really angry or something and I play a game here. it like helps me calm down a little bit,"
About 100 students, including Tegmeier, have been using the facility during the city's summer camp.
"The communication and leadership involved in a lot of these games to where you are working together cohesively teach them without even them knowing they are being taught lessons," said Evan Hendricks, the manager at Fusion 314.
For a long time, gaming has been frowned upon because of health and social stigmas, including young people being sedentary, and enticing violence.
Industry experts advocate that the sport can build a future and career if it is exposed safely to young people in a space like this.
"It gives them [youth] something to do. It keeps them engaged in school but it can provide so many college opportunities. The amount of colleges that are throwing 10, 15 thousand-dollar scholarships is wild," Hendricks said.
Maryville University in Town and Country, Missouri , for example, has one of top programs in the nation where students compete in professional leagues.
SLU, UMSL, and Lindenwood University also have programs for gaming enthusiasts.
On a high school level, Fusion 314 will be a headquarters for McCleur North High School students in the Fall and hopes to host its own summer camp in the future.
Fusion 314 will have open play every day from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. until the end of August.
When school starts operating hours will be from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m.
The gaming lab is free to enter and daily rates at $3 per hour for residents and $5 an hour for non-residents.
They host daily activities, birthday parties, and events on Saturdays and Sundays.