OVERLAND PARK, KS — After months of announcements about club closings around the country, it is encouraging that some club operators are opening new facilities, especially when those openings come from two of the largest club companies in the industry.

Bally Total Fitness, Chicago, which closed 26 clubs this summer as part of the company's emergence from Chapter 11 protection (part of about 50 closings since Bally filed for bankruptcy last December), opened a renovated club last month in Miami. The 40,000-square-foot club's renovation spanned about 18 months. A temporary 6,000-square-foot Bally had operated in the location during the renovation.

Life Time Fitness, Chanhassen, MN, which pared down its expectations from a dozen club openings to three in 2009, announced that the first of its three new clubs in 2010 is expected to open in January in the Cleveland suburb of Beachwood, OH.

Bally's new club in Miami opened on Sept. 1, the day the company announced its emergence from bankruptcy. The club features an Olympic-style roof-deck swimming pool, an outdoor rooftop running track overlooking the Miami cityscape and a Total Martial Arts facility that offers classes for both adults and kids.

“This new facility will be one of our top locations nationwide,” Bally CEO Mike Sheehan said in a company statement. “We are proud to provide the best value in fitness and offer our members a premium workout experience at a great price.”

The club also will offer a variety of group exercise programs, including yoga, Pilates, Zumba, kickboxing and a Powerflex program, in addition to a cycling studio.

“From the amount of fitness space to the top-notch equipment, this top-tier Bally club will be a great addition to the Miami community,” Steve Butler, zone vice president for Bally, said in the company statement. “This facility is very family friendly, and we are excited to bring local families to Bally for fun activities and fitness.”

The Beachwood, OH, club will be Life Time's fourth club in Ohio and first in the Cleveland area.

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