The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Lake Health launches campaign
Membership drive begins for fitness center at new wellness campus
The project engineer for Lake Health Mentor Wellness Campus is getting some questions outside his area of expertise.
“We’ve already had several people come up to our construction trailer asking for memberships,” said Tyler Becker, overseeing work on the 85,000-square-foot structure that will be about 60 percent fitness center.
More than 1,000 people have signed up for updates on the LiveHealthy memberships being offered, Lake Health Spokesman Jonathan
Archey said.
“There’s terrific buzz about this in our community,” he said.
The $33.5 million project has been in the works at 8655 Market St. for nearly three years and will culminate with the opening Jan. 2.
“Construction is proceeding on time and on budget, and the place is really coming together,” Archey said. “Most of the exterior brick is complete, the pools are being dug and most of the interior framing is finished. …
“It’s a really exciting project – a new approach to health care – aimed at keeping people healthy rather than simply treating illness or injury.”
More than a health club
Although the building is yet to be completed, Lake Health officials will kick off the LiveHealthy fitness center membership drive July 17. The first 1,500 members to join will receive discounts on the onetime enrollment fee.
The enrollment fees and discounts are as follows:
• 60 percent for the first 500 people to enroll — $175 for individuals ($70 with discount), $225 ($90) for couples, $235 ($94) for oneparent families and $250 ($100) for other families
• 40 percent for the next 500
• 20 percent for the 500 after that
There also are monthly membership fees: $50 per individual, $75 for couples, $75 for one-parent families, $100 for other families.
The enrollment fee covers the cost of a consultation with a team of health-care professionals, including athletic trainers, exercise physiologists, strength and conditioning specialists, health and wellness coaches, and licensed dietitians.
“It’s more than just coming in and signing up for a health club,” Archey said. “It involves very personalized plans. There will be screening involved, seeing what your numbers are, but also your personal goals.”
While there will be some services that require an additional fee, such as baby-sitting, the membership packages also include a new-member orientation session; use of locker rooms, an indoor track, basketball/volleyball courts, a rock-climbing wall, and spa and pools; an updated exercise prescription every three months; group fitness classes; and monthly health education seminars.
The drive runs from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the LiveHealthy Membership Trailer at the corner of Market Street and Munson Road. Prospective members may enroll between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to noon, Saturdays through Jan. 2.
Something for everyone
The rest of the Mentor wellness campus, including Lake Health Wellness Institute, will be home to physicians’ offices, urgent care, diagnostic and rehabilitation services, physical therapy, sports medicine, aquatic therapy and work-related therapy.
Like existing Lake Health facilities, these services are open to the public by appointment. The campus will replace a Lake Health facility on Tyler Boulevard.
Wellness services will include weight and nutrition counseling, wellness coaching, behavior modification, stress management, massage therapy and group yoga classes.
The campus also offers KidHealthy, a supervised play area for children ages 5 to 12, for free to those who have purchased family memberships. Member guests will be charged a nominal fee. Baby-sitting is available for children 6 weeks and older at a similar cost while their caretaker works out or visits a medical provider.
Journey to wellness
There were several steps to bring the massive project to this point, including obtaining permission from the city Planning Commission, City Council and voters to rezone the property from R-4 Single Family Residential to B-2 General Business District to make way for the project.
The change was approved nearly 2 to 1 at the polls in March 2016.
Purchase and development agreements had to be signed by several parties — the school district, city, The Boldt Company and Lake County Ohio Port & Economic Development Authority.
The Port Authority issued bonds to finance the project. The property is owned by the Port Authority and leased to Lake Mentor Properties LLC. It is being subleased to Lake Health for 18 years.
“The Lake Health Wellness Campus will be a tremendous new asset not only for Mentor and Mentor Schools, but for all of Lake County and beyond,” Port Authority Public Finance Director Tim Cahill said, listing its various attributes. “The Port Authority is very pleased and grateful to be a strategic community partner and critical financial resource for the development of this project.”
Archey emphasized that no local taxes are being used to build or run the center.
Making an impact
The project will create 75 jobs and yield $400,000 in property tax revenue for the city. It will employ a total of 150 health-care professionals.
Benefits to the school system, which donated land for the project, include the swim team’s use of the six-lane lap pool, rather than driving to a Geneva facility. The fitness center will offer a warmwater therapy pool, a leisure pool and whirlpool as well.
Students also will have access to memberships, medical facilities and internships.
“Mentor Schools, just like all other businesses, municipalities and organizations in the area, will be able to take advantage of reduced-cost enrollment opportunities to help ensure the wellness of their staff,” Archey said. “Such firms should contact Lake Health’s marketing and corporate development offices for more information on that.”
An indoor pool has been on city officials’ radar for decades, but talks of a taxpayer-funded facility failed to gain traction.
“It is exciting to see the wellness center progress happening every day knowing this will benefit our students in so many ways,” said interim Mentor Schools Superintendent William Porter. “Through our partnership with Lake Health, having this stateof-the-art facility on our campus means excellent learning opportunities for our students, who will gain hands-on experience in a growing career field. And, of course, our swim team athletes at the middle and high school levels will benefit greatly when the fitness center opens and they can practice here at home rather than a long bus ride away.”
City officials say the Lake Health project has generated a lot of curiosity in the community.
“The partnership between Lake Health and Mentor Schools is pretty novel, and it’s going to offer a unique wellness option right here in Mentor,” said Mentor Community Relations Administrator Ante Logarusic. “They’ve made fantastic progress on the facility and we’re looking forward to it becoming a reality soon.”