Mystic — A Waterford couple is seeking a special use permit from the Stonington Planning and Zoning Commission to open an “escape room adventures” facility in a 2,700-square-foot section of the former West Marine location next to McQuade’s Marketplace.

Escape rooms require participants working as team to solve clues and riddles in an attempt to escape from a themed room within a specific period of time. They began in Europe and have opened U.S. cities over the past decade. There are a handful in Connecticut, the closest being in Middletown and New Haven.

The commission has slated a public hearing on the special permit request from Shelly and Brian Wilson at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Mystic Middle School.

Shelly Wilson said Wednesday that visiting escape rooms had become a popular activity for her and her family in recent years as they took vacations.

“This winter, it came to us that our area could utilize something like this,” she said. “We felt that in Mystic with the summer and fall tourists, it would be a hit. There’s not a lot for families to do after hours when the Seaport and the aquarium are closed.”

If the commission approves the special use permit, she said she hopes to open Mystified at the end of July.

According to the brochure for the business, “An escape room is a live action adventure game which takes you into an emporium of hidden clues, perplexing puzzles and mysterious objects. Working against the clock, you will need to sort through the madness, to solve the riddles and to follow the trail of clues that will allow you to escape.”

The facility target audiences are business and organizations looking for team building activities as well as the general public.

Wilson said two themed rooms have been designed. The first has a “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” theme, in which players are captured by Captain Nemo and must escape within 60 minutes before the submarine dives. Coincidentally, Brian Wilson is an Electric Boat employee.

The second has a “Treasure Island” theme, in which players arrive on the island and have to find the treasure before pirates who are offshore arrive.

There also is space for a third room that Wilson said would open in October or November. She added that every 10 months a new themed game would be introduced.

The application states that the possible hours of operation would be noon to 10 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday. During the day, it would accommodate corporate team building and private events and at night the public could book times.

Each session lasts 60 minutes with 10 participants per room.

The application states that because all session times would be prebooked, at no time would the business “draw in large unpredictable crowds.”

The cost is $28 for adults and $23 for youth ages 10 to 17 and seniors. The business website is www.mystifiedct.com

j.wojtas@theday.com