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The competition would be enough to make anyone shudder. Within a half-hour drive from West Ohio Fit and Fun in Celina stand four YMCAs, eight chain gyms, and “anyone who owns a set of barbells and a garage,” says Curt McCullough, commercial real estate broker and consultant on the project.
The nearby rivals eventually eclipsed the fitness center, built in the mid-’70s during tennis’ heyday. “They were struggling with the facility and how to make it marketable,” he says.
Adding to the woe, a devastating 100-year flood on Fourth of July weekend in 2003 put the place under 7 feet of water. Legal wrangling and a pending lawsuit with the state tabled any plans to reconnect with its audience—until recently.
But Fit and Fun will soon reopen with a twist, McCullough explains. Along with the traditional fitness center amenities, the new-and-improved 21-acre facility will offer a 7,000-square-foot video and redemption game room, a tropically themed swimming pool, birthday party space, go-karts, a sheltered picnic area for larger events, and an outside soccer field (as well as a sports bar and restaurant).
“By adding the family entertainment center elements, we will make it a viable part of our community,” says an enthusiastic McCullough, who has worked to open an FEC for more than a decade. “Our audience will grow from approximately 1,000 members and families to 300,000 people within a 45-minute drive.”
West Ohio Fit and Fun belongs to a new breed of hybrid facilities. Part health club, part FEC, this type of venue aims to draw big crowds with its diverse set of attractions.
Party Packages, Group Fun
Thorbeckes FitLife Centers, with three spots in Washington state, is another member of this small but growing niche. In October the company added laser tag at one location based on numerous requests from members for more activities for their kids, says Heather Bonagofski, youth and special events director and laser tag coordinator.
The operators anticipated it would perform well because the cardio-heavy attraction fits with the health club’s overall mission to improve wellness. Plus, the closest laser tag arena is 30 miles away, making the competition scarce. Despite little marketing, laser tag has been popular so far.
“It brings in community members that would not come to the gym normally,” Bonagofski says. “It gives them something else to do besides sitting on the couch.”
Widening the audience was just one motivating factor for installing laser tag at the 20-year-old facility; she hopes the move will increase birthday party business, as well. Now guests could opt for a pool package at their aquatics center or a laser tag party.
Management at McDermont Field House in Lindsay, California, felt it, too, could offer a variety of attractions and fill a community need—be it a location for a church group to hold a function, a high school sports team to practice, a company to have a team-building exercise, or a family to spend an afternoon.
“There is no place like us around here,” boasts marketing manager Marie Arroyo, noting members travel from a 40-mile radius while general guests come in from around the world.
McDermont Field House opened in 2008 at the site of a long-abandoned citrus-packing house. Acquired by the city of Lindsay, the monstrous 178,000-square-foot, four-story facility covers the gamut of health-centric activities and attractions: basketball and volleyball courts, indoor soccer field, laser tag, rock wall, 70-foot-high zip line, indoor surfing machine (the only in the state), a light-up dance floor, skate park, and inflatables. Oh, and yes, there are a full fitness center, boxing ring, and aerobics classes.
The facility didn’t come cheap: It cost $18 million and counting to put it together, Arroyo says. A hard-working grant team helped to generate much of the funds, and the operators plan to continue to expand, as more opportunities present themselves.
“We are very proud of this place,” she says. “People are starving for things to do. We want to offer entertainment that keeps families together and does not raid their pockets.”
Contact Contributing Editor Mike Bederka at mbederka@IAAPA.org.
New FECs Use Health Club Membership Model
To borrow from the ubiquitous American Express motto: Membership has its privileges at these new hybrid FEC/health clubs. At California’s McDermont Field House, guests pay $29.99 a month for unlimited use of the attractions, fitness and aquatics center, and a nine-hole community golf course, which is off site but within walking distance. In addition, customers receive $40 in credit to play in the arcade. Members of Thorbeckes FitLife Centers receive $3 off the usual $8 for laser tag, says Heather Bonagofski. West Ohio Fit and Fun plans to continue the fitness membership program when it opens. Members will be entitled to special deals and events, which should dull any worry that they’re in a public facility, not a private club, says consultant Curt McCullough. “We want to protect their investment and add value to their membership.”
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