Kirk Galiani is planning to open a Onelife Fitness club later this year in Kansas City, MO, the Mid-Atlantic club chain's first venture into the Midwest.
The new location of Onelife Fitness, which currently has nine clubs in Virginia, will be in the heart of downtown Kansas City in the Power & Light District, a growing development of businesses operated by The Cordish Cos., Baltimore. The club's opening, first reported by The Kansas City Star, is expected this summer, Galiani confirmed to Club Industry.
The club will sit above the Cosentino's Downtown Market grocery store. About 33,000 square feet is available for the new club, but with 24-foot-high ceilings, the square footage of the club could grow if a second floor or a mezzanine is added to the club, Galiani says.
"We really like what has been done in the Power & Light District and in and around downtown with a lot of new apartments and condo buildings as well as office and retail," Galiani says. "It's very exciting to be a part of it. We believe that we're going to deliver a great product, and we're going to have an incredible staff that will deliver a great experience to our members."
Galiani, who said the cost of the project will be about $5 million, has a strong association and friendship with the executives at The Cordish Cos., which had earmarked the space above Cosentino's for a future health club after the store opened in 2009.
Members of the new Onelife Fitness club will have access to Jones Pool, a rooftop pool in the Power & Light District. And with easy access to the grocery store, Galiani says he has no plans for a juice bar in the new club.
Fitness facility growth in downtown Kansas City includes a 100,000-square-foot branch of the Greater Kansas City YMCA that is expected to open in 2016. The Y is in the early stages of raising funds for the facility, according to The Star.
Galiani and his brother, John, formed a new entity called US Fitness last year when they formally joined forces with New Evolution Ventures (NeV), Lafayette, CA. The Galianis, who for years operated Gold's Gyms in the Mid-Atlantic region and were once co-owners of Gold's Gym International, first worked with NeV in 2010 when they reached an agreement to open Crunch Fitness clubs for the private equity firm.
The partnership allows the Galianis to open Onelife Fitness clubs, Crunch Fitness clubs or other NeV brands, which include Madonna's Hard Candy Fitness. Madonna recently announced she will be at the grand opening of a new Hard Candy Fitness club in Toronto next month.