Updated 9/3/20
updated: May 27th 2020
Dear Sports Center Member,
After careful consideration, we will be opening additional club services beginning at noon tomorrow (May 27th). These additional services will include the indoor pool and indoor pool locker rooms for all members. We will also begin allowing access to the remaining facilities for those interested. This will be accomplished by instituting the "professional athlete" clause noted in the recent executive order signed by Governor Cooper.
As mentioned in previous correspondences, we have significantly elevated our focus on health and safety. Please take a moment to review the "Be Smart, Healthy Start" guidelines that were provided to you last week and are attached to this e-mail. In addition, we will be incorporating best practices from states that have fully reopened health clubs. This guidance has been effective in those locations and we feel confident it will work for our club.
We would like to again mention that the health and safety of all our members is paramount. If you are experiencing symptoms associated with COVID-19, please stay home. Additionally, though we have taken many measures to increase your health and safety within the club, we cannot guarantee your safety in all circumstances. If you feel uncomfortable in this environment or have a underlying condition, we suggest you refrain from using the club.
Also attached is an assumption of risk / waiver regarding COVID-19 that you will need to sign before using the club. We are taking safety precautions very seriously and this document outlines that you have both read our Guidelines (attached) as well as assume all risks of using the club. This document will be required at or prior to entry. To help facilitate this process, you may print out this document, sign and have ready. If you are not able to print or you would like additional information, we are having a brief open house tomorrow beginning at 10 am and lasting thru noon. You will be able to complete the document and hear more about our "professional athlete" clause.
Finally, we would like to comment that this decision was arrived after the careful consideration of many factors. These include the financial stability of the club, the welfare of our employees, and the needs of our members. We appreciate your continued support thru this event and although there may be some challenges ahead, we feel this is the best direction for our entire club community.
Respectfully,
Paul Gillikin
Director of Operations
NEW UPDATE: APRIL 30th 2020
Dear Sports Center Member,
First up, we miss our members. The club is way too quiet nowadays and we are looking forward to normal operations. We are fielding numerous questions about when we expect to re-open. We are closely monitoring announcements from our state leaders and at this point nothing definitive has been presented. We are projecting that we will be allowed to open around mid-May and will of-course accelerate this if given the opportunity.
Based on this assumption, we will be billing for May at half your normal dues structure. If you are on draft, either from a bank account or credit card, you draft will be processed early next week and will reflect half the normal amount. As an example, if you typically pay $49.00 per month for your membership, you will see a draft of $24.50. If you pay semi-annually or quarterly adjustments will be made to your statement. We feel that this is the most reasonable and fair way to approach billing and provides for the club to return to acceptable levels of operation as quickly as possible.
Additionally, we are improving our safety measures in preparation for your return. This includes additional levels of equipment and surface sanitation and additional stations for self cleaning and sanitizing. We will also implement additional social distancing measures that reflect state and federal guidance. These additional measures will be announced in a follow-up e-mail in approximately 7 to 10 days.
The consequences of COVID-19 have been a challenge for us. We are tackling head-on and with optimism about our future and look forward to seeing you in the club soon.
In health,
Paul Gillikin
Director of Operations
Update: March 24th 2020
Dear Sports Center Member,
On Monday, March 23rd, Governor Roy Cooper put in place an order that requires all health clubs operating in North Carolina to suspend operations by no later than Wednesday March 25th at 5 pm. Although we feel the measures we implemented have been effective in helping contain coronovirus in our community, we will follow the guidance put forth by the state. We will be suspending our operations on Wednesday, March 25th at 5 pm. Premier (24/7) access will NOT be available per the Governors order.
Membership dues will be frozen during the closure. Currently we anticipate a resumption of operation no later than May 1st. Membership dues will resume automatically when operations resume.
One of our core beliefs is that regular exercise is a foundation of overall health. Research supports that regular exercise will also support a healthy immune system and reduce stress levels. During the mandated closure, we encourage you to stay fit by tuning into our online workouts. We will be publishing multiple workouts on our You Tube channel as well as offering Facebook live classes. There is also an opportunity to participate in an online nutrition group thru Facebook.
During the closure we will take the opportunity to spruce up some areas and do some improvements. We intend to come back stronger than ever when this is over. We will have an administrative presence in the club from 9 am to 5 pm on weekdays. You can continue to reach us by e-mail or phone during this period. Account related questions can be directed to shirley@wordpress-833185-3128831.cloudwaysapps.com and general questions can be directed to my e-mail account.
We appreciate your support and patronage and we wish all of our members good luck and good health. As we have said before, we will get thru this together.
In health,
Paul Gillikin
Director of Operations
Paul@wordpress-833185-3128831.cloudwaysapps.com
Dear Sports Center Member,
We appreciate the outpouring of support and appreciation regarding how our Club is handing the COVID-19 health crises. Our Sports Center community continues to be an amazing group of people. Make no mistake, this is a very challenging time for the club and our industry as a whole. Some of you may be aware that many national health club chains have decided to close out of concern for the health and safety of their communities. Currently, we are following the guidance issued by state and local authorities. That guidance has allowed health clubs and recreation facilities to continue to operate provided they follow CDC recommendations. When and if that policy changes, we will obviously make the necessary adjustments.
This week we have been closely monitoring usage patterns to insure we are meeting guidelines put forth by government. It is not currently necessary to restrict usage to certain areas, as we are consistently staying under the guidance numbers for gatherings. This is of course subject to change and we will continue to monitor. We are asking members to be very aware of CDC guidance in regards to your surroundings and self-manage. If there are more than 10 people gathered in an area, we would ask you to temporarily relocate to another area of the club while it clears.
In addition to the club policies identified in the attached document, below are some additional measures we are implementing:
1) Traditional water fountains will be unavailable. You will continue to have access to the water bottle fillers located in the main lobby area and the back hallway
2) No out of town guests allowed in the club. This includes guests of charter members.
3) We are asking members to restrict their daily club usage to no more than two hours. Avoid social congregation of any type. We want you to work out and then go home.
4) Help us by paying attention to the number of folks in your area. If this exceeds 10 then go do something else for a while.
We recognize that many of you have decided to stay home thru the health crises. This is an understandable decision, but we want you to stay active. Over the next couple of weeks, we will launch online workouts. Our intention is to have both posted workouts and also live workouts that you can choose to do from home. These will be mostly body weight based. More information to come on this program
We appreciate our community and its health and safety is important to us. We are doing our best to do our part and we are asking you to do yours. As we have said before, we will get thru this together.
Paul Gillikin
Operations Manager
Last Updated: 3/19/20 4pm