New gym plans for railway precinct

A NEW 24/7 gym owned by Snap Fitness has been proposed for the former Lidgerwood's Furniture building on Norton Street opposite the Wangaratta Railway Station. Patrons will have access to the gym at all hours via a front and rear swipe card entry, with security cameras and silent alarm system, and the intention is to cater for between 900 to 1000 people. The gym will have a floor space of 757m2 including toilet and shower facilities, recovery rooms with saunas and massage chairs, Pilates room, an office, along with on-site parking. The proposal includes a total of 18 onsite car spaces to support the expected number of patrons using the facility at peak times, plus employees. A second component to the project is a separate tenancy to be created to the north of the fitness centre consisting of a 136m² gross floor area, toilet and kitchenette, front door to Norton Street and rear access from the car park, and four on-site car spaces (of 22 spaces) at the rear. This tenancy will be available for retail or allied health suites or offices and depending upon the use, may or may not require further planning approval. As the project is only making internal changes to create this tenancy, the buildings and works are not included in this planning permit application. The elevation fronting Norton Street will be painted and upgraded to meet Snap Fitness corporate requirements with a colour palette of red, white and black. The large areas of glazing will remain to the street, encouraging two-way visual connection and activation of the street. Areas of glazing will have decals applied to provide some privacy for people using the facility. Justine and Wendy Garvie who have lodged the paperwork to buy the property and are no strangers to the fitness industry. Speaking onsite last week Mr Garvie said they have several Snap Fitness gyms in Queensland and NSW. "We have a son who lives near Wangaratta and we're from Roma in Queensland and understand the rural lifestyle which is what we would like to focus on," he said. "We like to own our buildings and specialise in going to regional areas where there's a building that's older and needs a bit of love and attention. "We saw an opportunity here and it's always been a good, strong town and we've always liked it. "There's a few gyms here but I think there's room for us." Mr Garvie said the gym will have a functional zone, pin loaded weights for beginners, a cardio section, free weights area, Pilates, highend bathrooms, a creche for kids and possibly another room for PTs, EPs, a masseuse and saunas. "We'll cater for most people and our clubs are set up to cater for kids who are still at school, those wanting to progress into their sports, or just to get active," he said. "We have 80-90 year olds in our clubs so it's sort of like that everyday Joe sort of club with a mixture of everything." There have been a few objections to the plans, but Mr Garvie was looking to cross a few myths out and move ahead with the project. "We're hoping to open the gym mid-year and we're going to use locals to build it, but it depends on the planning process." Measures to minimise the impact of the facility on adjacent residential uses include: • On-site car and bike parking to address expected peak demand times and minimise over-flow parking in nearby streets. Peaks times are identified as being between 5- 7am and 5-7pm with up to 30 patrons at a time using the facility. • Attenuation measures to reduce noise and vibrations from the sound system being heard or felt beyond the building. This includes undermount speakers installed to the ceilings to ensure that noise and vibration is kept within this confined space and does not escape into the ceiling roof cavity where it can exit the building. • Insulation will be added to external walls that are not solid brick or concrete. • The volume of music will be reduced between the hours of 6pm-9am. • All music is background music confined to the building with a level no higher than general conversation. • There is no group fitness studio or instructors with microphones. • Security cameras and silent alarm system to improve surveillance and safety within this precinct. The Lidgerwood's Furniture store was operated from the building by Gary Lidgerwood for 23 years from 1999 and was previously used by GOTAFE automotive students.

New gym plans for railway precinct

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