New club is the result of public/private collaboration.
MAPLE GROVE, Minn. - Club Sports International (CSI) is expanding its Northwest Athletic Club family with the construction of a new facility.
Scheduled to open in the fall, Northwest Athletic Club-Maple Grove will consist of a $12 million athletic club and an outdoor recreational pool complex. The new facility will join 10 other Northeast Athletic Clubs, including two tennis facilities. Like the typical Northeast Athletic Club, the Maple Grove location will be a large, family-oriented, multipurpose facility with programs for people of all ages.
While CSI broke ground in October 1999 for the facility, the project has been years in the making. Specifically, CSI has been working with Maple Grove for five years to bring a club to the community. Ric Zim-merman, CSI's regional manager, says that the socioeconomic makeup of the community and its interest in wellness positions it as a prime demographic for the Northwest facility. Furthermore, the wide scope of business communities in the Maple Grove area makes the city a choice location for a new club.
Although the new club will resemble the other Northwest clubs, it's relationship with the community will make the facility unique. Specifically, the outdoor recreational pool complex will be shared by Northwest Athletic Club-Maple Grove and the Maple Grove Community Center, located next door. CSI and Maple Grove are working to manage the pool together.
If all goes according to schedule, the swimming facility will complete construction in June, with the facility finishing up in September. And, according to Zimmerman, the Maple Grove site won't be the only Northwest Athletic Club to join CSI this year. The company intends to expand the Northwest chain with as many as three additional Twin Cities locations - either through acquisitions or startups - in the year 2000.