I'm personally glad to see the local guys getting in on this.
The lady I talked to said memberships would be around $100 per month. If Capital Athletic is $108, I expect this one to be more than that.
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California Family Fitness signs Towers pact
Sacramento Business Journal - 12:23 PM PST Fridayby Kelly JohnsonStaff writer
http://www.bizjournals.com/sacrament...37.html?page=1
California Family Fitness, the fast-growing local chain of fitness centers, completed an agreement this week to open a $15 million luxury gym inside the planned The Towers downtown high-rise
The 42,000-square-foot club would be built on the 10th and 11th floors of developer John Saca's high-rise, California Family Fitness co-owner Larry Gury said. The gym would be the most expensive yet for the 13-club chain owned by Gury and partner Russ Kuhn.
Saca was scheduled to announce the selection of California Family Fitness late Thursday at the opening of a sales office for The Towers. Saca hopes to open his 53-story high-rise on Capitol Mall within 2 1/2 years.
Before construction can begin, Saca must secure a financial partner and gain approval from the California Department of Real Estate to make the buyer deposits nonrefundable. Appointments have been scheduled starting March 29 for some of those prospects to sign firm contracts, signalling that backers expect to have state approval in hand by then.
"We think it's a very prestigious project," Gury said, "that will definitely be a great landmark and addition to the Sacramento region and we want to be a part of that."
California Family Fitness' coverage in the city's central core is not as strong as in the suburbs, where it has been building massive gyms with numerous amenities. Its existing downtown gym, which would continue operating, is old and cramped.
"We do need a larger facility downtown for more of a regional appeal," Gury said.
There's a huge demand for another downtown gym, Saca said, given the development of new housing downtown and growth of West Sacramento.
"They had the same vision I did," Saca said. "They really want to see downtown thrive like I do."
The fitness center also would draw from Land Park, East Sacramento and Natomas, he said.
Large downtown gyms Capital Athletic Club and 24 Hour Fitness stay busy
Rick Leonard, general manager of Capital Athletic Club, said his 52,000-square-foot club would have to stay on the top of its game if California Family Fitness opened in The Towers. Capital Athletic also caters to the high-end market, with laundry service, shoe shine and locker rooms for $108 a month for members.
He added that California Family Fitness has been extremely successful, but a downtown club targeted at professionals would be different from its family-focused model. The club would have to charge top dollar and attract many members to cover the overhead of buying the space. And the pool, basketball court, conference rooms and large locker rooms would take a big chunk of space from other fitness activities, Leonard said.
Fit Development LLC -- Gury and Kuhn's development company that builds gyms and other projects -- would buy the fitness center space.
The gym would cost $15 million, not including the exercise equipment. The fitness center would include a swimming pool on the deck, a basketball court, conference rooms for members, wireless Internet access, group fitness, sauna, and "plush, elegant locker rooms," Gury said.
The gym would share a lobby with The Spa at la Borgata, which would open a 12,000-square-foot spa and salon.
"That gym is going to have an incredible view and really an experience for people working out at that gym," Saca said.
He has worked with Gury and Kuhn on other property deals totaling several million dollars. Gury and Kuhn also have deposits to each buy a condo in The Towers.
Saca has lined up InterContinental Hotels & Resorts to occupy the first 18 floors of the first tower with about 230 hotel rooms. The Towers, which would be built on the site of the former Sacramento Union at 301 Capitol, would contain about 800 condos and shops.
California Family Fitness is proceeding with two other large projects. The company is completing construction plans for a $6.5 million club in Natomas that would open next March, and anticipates in November opening a fitness center of at least 100,000 square feet in part of the former JVC plant in Elk Grove.
This is an updated version of a story that appeared in the March 24 print edition.