A longtime Scotts Valley workout facility shut its doors with little fanfare last week.
Scotts Valley Fitness, on Mount Hermon Road near the entrance to Highway 17, closed Oct. 12, has turned over all of its memberships to Santa Cruz Power Fitness on Water Street in Santa Cruz.
Scotts Valley Fitness co-owner John Swedlund declined to speak about the closure.
Santa Cruz Power Fitness club manager Mo Fathali, however, confirmed that about 600 memberships were transferred to the Santa Cruz club owned by Al Menna, a Scotts Valley resident.
“When somebody closes, it’s a negative that hurts the entire industry,” Fathali said. “We try to make it as much a positive as possible.”
Power Fitness, which Fathali said is 4.6 miles from the shuttered gym, will honor the time Scotts Valley members have left on their memberships. The club will also honor their monthly rates indefinitely for those who continue there.
“People are coming in and are just being wowed,” Fathali said of the 14,000-square-foot facility. “We’ve got a lot of positive response from the people coming from Scotts Valley.”
Scotts Valley Fitness had about 5,500 square feet of gym space.
Power Fitness, formerly Gold’s Gym, will allow Scotts Valley Fitness members to take a family member to the club free of charge through the end of the year. It will also offer a free year’s membership to any former Scotts Valley Fitness members who lose 12 pounds in a month, Fathali said.
Scotts Valley Fitness, run by brothers John and Jeff Swedlund, first paid for a business license in the city of Scotts Valley in June 2000. John Swedlund set the San Lorenzo Valley High School shot put record in 1981 with a throw of 56 feet, 9 inches.
