While this is a letter we wish we did not have to write, we are notifying you that Island Fitness will be temporarily closing as of Tuesday, March 17th. This is a decision that has become increasingly inevitable. There will be no onsite group fitness classes on Monday, March 16th. Not only does our personal research support these actions, but we are fortunate to have members in our community who are experts and have offered advice and resources such as this, which we cannot ignore.
Island Fitness is a business built on the foundation of bringing people together, yet one of the most effective ways to curtail the spread of this virus is social distancing. We understand there is a question of overreacting and succumbing to hysteria. We have felt the tide shift over the last few days as expert after expert reinforced this move.
We have begun work on bringing you group fitness classes and personal training online. Stand by, we will have instructions for you in the next few days.
We will initially plan for a 2-week shutdown, but cannot say for sure exactly how long this closure will last. We will look for official guidance on a safe time to reopen.
The financial impact of this is obviously significant. We have 60 extraordinary employees and are committed to standing by them and assuring they are able to maintain their livelihoods and be here when we reopen our doors.
We are asking you to please not cancel your memberships or put them on hold at this time, unless you yourselves are financially burdened by this crisis. We have been in business for 18 years, standing by our community, and we now ask that we all stand together in these uncertain times.
To our collective good health.
Michael, Alexa and the entire Island Fitness staff.