Nov 16, 2009 11:31 pm US/Eastern
Members Find Gym With Closed Doors
BELLINGHAM (WBZ) ―
-
-
Powerhouse Gym in Bellingam closed its doors to members without notification.
WBZ
Some two thousand would-be work-out buffs feel like they've been left high and dry by a local gym that closed in the middle of the night this weekend.
"I don't know what to do," said member Amanda Staples. "I'm not sure where my payment went for the month."
Powerhouse Gym is a national chain, but the owners of the Bellingham branch say their landlord overcharged them and forced them out. They were afraid he might lock the doors with all their equipment inside, so they moved it out overnight Saturday.
Now they've relocated and merged with another gym in nearby Milford, called Perfect Shape Gym.
"We have new equipment in there. It's a bigger space," said one of the owners, Andy Noyes.
"The last thing we want to do is aggravate people in this economy," said Noyes.
He says managers have been working the phones trying to notify customers.
Still, two days after the doors were locked customers were pulling up to the empty gym Monday, surprised to see it shuttered.
"I'm here to work-out, go on the treadmill...not tonight and not here," said customer Ed Lawlor.
Chalk it up to a dispute over the lease. The owners deny the landlord's claims that they skipped out on the rent and owe him tens of thousands of dollars. He said he plans to go after that money and open up his own gym at the Bellingham location.
"I think it's bad business," added Cindy Hunt.
The former owners of Powerhouse say they will honor memberships at their new Milford location. They say anyone who doesn't want to go there will get a refund
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
Reporting
Comments