Rumours of Stores Coming to Headingley Costco Site

The Costco is already having an impact along Portage Avenue in terms of retail renovations and filling in some of the empty spaces along the street. The landlords with property sitting idle might get some calls of interest. Still, renovations to update tired spots is accelerating. Safeway and Walmart have renovated. Uncertain if other grocers such as Sobeys on Portage have renovated but most stores may require a re-fresh to compete. As mentioned, Costco 's imminent arrival will change traffic patterns and attract other retailers as well as residential.

This is an important thing to note about the Headingley Costco compared to the others in the city. The west Winnipeg one will have so much housing on site. It is only now, decades later, that apartments are going up on McGillivary are within walking distance of the Kenaston store. The problem is that there will never be enough housing around that store unless they decide to take over something like Rona property or build up vertically. And that wouldn't be instant.

Headingley has already seen a lot of residential building quite separate from the Westport Festival where the Costco is to reside. As seen in the plan above, there are a ton of apartments within walking distance of the store. Mixed developments are what every retail area tries to achieve now. The vulnerability of big box and regular malls to major retail closures has become all too apparent. The United States has found that even having a grocery store is no recipe for success for a mall since so many grocers are closing locations.

The rumours about what will join the Costco have been flying in the last weeks. Are announcements coming soon? The clues can possibly be seen once again in the plan above. There are two large retail spots that look suspiciously like a Red River Co-Op or a Save on Foods. Neither of these two have stores in the west part of the city. It is unlikely both grocers move in but expect an announcement of at least one of them coming. The other rumour is that now that Rona has rationalized their Lowe's Home Improvement stores into their national group and closed stores literally across the street from one another, they are looking to build a Rona in west Winnipeg. It could be that Home Depot might try to usurp Rona in their plans but they might be happy with the amount of stores they have now.

There is at least one hotel listed as going up. Rumour it was some kind of Hilton but  given the proximity to the iceplex, Assiniboia Downs, Red River Ex and the city of Winnipeg. A hotel, as opposed to a motel, is very much needed in the west part of the city. Large hockey tournaments consistently fill every motel along the strip. Two other motels on that stretch of Portage are usually jammed with hockey parents. It is not inconceivable that more hotels might be added to the plan given the attractions nearby.

Lots of restaurants were being added. It appears McDonald's to have a place by the roadside. They have a location at Walmart nearby but the nearest drive-thru is at least several minutes down Portage. There has also been talk of everything from an Earls to a Moxie's to a Joeys locating on the site. As far as new restaurants to the city, rumour has been Jersey's Mike's has been looking at the site. Also on the list has been an additional city location for Freddie's Frozen Custard and Steakburgers. In addition Shake Shack, Fazoli's and Chick-fil-A have all been mentioned as possible. Not on the list at all is Cheesecake Factory which has no Canadian expansion plans.

As far as other retail, it is likely some sort of sports store is likely although SportChek closed down just down the street. However, one story going around is they didn't want to sign a new lease if they were interested in the site near Costco. 

Another interesting rumour has been that a major gym will build a large fitness center in the shopping area. Whether this is Goodlife, Altea or a re-located Shapes or maybe something else entirely. 

Coscto's completion is expected this year so it is very likely a flurry of announcements comes soon on what joins it. It is worth noting that much like Seasons of Tuxedo, it could take a decade or more to fill all the space. Given the rumours though, it appears there is huge interest in the site.

Fit 4 Less St. James Opens Soon

Fit 4 Less is indeed part of Goodlife Fitness but it is the discount arm for the company and membership is not interchangeable. Unlike Goodlife, Fit 4 Less offers more limited staff hours, no classes and trainers and only a few amenities like tanning, massage chairs and hydro beds. It is open 24 hours with a card pass but showers are closed when no staff are around.

The pandemic was not kind to the fitness industry. Many Snap and Anytime Fitness Clubs were closed permanently. Many Goodlife Fitness locations were slow to re-open or complete their building. Some of their locations closed as well or were changes to Fit 4 Less.

The St. James location will bring the the number of Fit 4 Less in Winnipeg to three locations. One of the more prominent locations of the company is at St. Vital Mall.

Since the pandemic many new apartment buildings have been adding amenities such a fitness centres but plenty of places still don't have them nor maintain them if they do. And few offer 24 hour service. In other words: There is a need for them across Canada. 

The grocery locations for Goodlife have served them well over the decades. But the big premium locations often stand alone. The old Goodlife on Kenaston is about to become a gym again. No word on the new name but will report when more is known.

The gyms re-opening and new ones coming is a sign the pandemic is being put behind many people. However, make no mistake it changed the industry. Reserving a group exercise spot and not crowding space remains in place. It changed some people's workouts to home units as well. But for the most part, gyms are coming back. It it still an open question if we see a bunch of Snap and Anytime Fitness places to pop up all over again.

As for St. James: Have we see the last of the Goodlifes in the region? I'd say no. Expect something bigger coming.

Serratus Movement Centre

In November of 2019, I moved from my long time place of employment and business at Goodlife Fitness Kenaston. A corporate decision in Ontario was made that there would be no more therapists in Canada as they wished to focus on core aspects of the fitness industry.

My clinic John Dobbin Massage Therapy has been successful at Goodlife. I was a bit worried but I also knew that Kenaston was supposed to close as well and that change was inevitable. Goodlife was planning three new locations and closing two old locations. After nearly 10 years, I wasn't sure how it was going to affect me.

My colleague and I tried to figure a place to go to. We had been working together for years in a single clinic room. She was an athletic therapist so had an office but sometimes you need a gym associated with your clinic. I just preferred to work in a gym after so many years. There were a number of offers and previously from a variety of clinics but I wanted to continue work with a fitness center.

My colleague Sue had previously worked with Serratus Movement Centre when they were on Corydon opposite Mona Lisa. In the subsequent years they had moved to Henlow Bay off  of Scurfield in a larger site and prospered in the niche areas of training, classes and youth programming. It turned out to be a perfect site as it was close to my old location and close to other clients working, living and at fitness centers elsewhere.

Serratus had clinic rooms in offices at the front of their building. It seemed a perfect fit. So in November of 2019, I moved to Serratus. Goodlife had me take everything that wasn't nailed down from massage chairs to filing cabinets. Although I moved November 1, I had to return every day for nearly three weeks to shred files older than a certain time. I was able to keep other files but there was a lot of sorting. Moreover, I was able to remove any remaining things at other Goodlifes. It was a lot of work while trying to get clients to move with me.

In addition to massage I work in entertainment so at the same time I was renting equipment and working events such as Commerce Social and various conferences, galas, etc. I had worked on a few movies as well. By December, I was finished with Kenaston and everything was moved and sorted as I was working at my location in Serratus while gearing up for a big 2020.

Little did we know 2020 and up to now in 2021 would be so awful. I was just gearing up for a big year when early January I was hit in the eye and a week or so later the sickest I've been with the flu. It laid me out for days and I had to go hospital where they worried about Covid. Keep in mind this was before there was even a case in North America. I did recover after a very long time but in February 2020, my parents seniors home was hit by a virus that made people violently sick. My mom and dad got it and in my assistance to them, I got it. Once again I was so sick. Sicker than my parents, in fact.

Meanwhile, business was slowing as Covid 19 fears grew. Still, as I recovered, I felt we should be okay but as cases hit North America, I felt like everyone should expect updates on how to avoid what we saw in China, Europe and in parts of North America. Still, I was optimistic about my new clinic and entertainment business prospects for the new year.

By mid March everything was shut down for everyone as the first wave hit. My entertainment business completely collapsed and has been that way since March. It is only now that prospects are returning with the movie business. As for massage, I've been allowed to work since May but by the fitness center has varying capacity or has been totally closed three times. It can not be more awful for them.

Still, limited as I have been, I can work. Had I still been at Goodlife, the doors would have been locked and not opened for any business therein.

And for a while in summer, it seemed like we might have beaten the worst of it although there was no entertainment opened which hurt my busy summer schedule.

I don't think anyone imagined it could get worse. And worse even still. I spent a great deal of summer emptying and prepping my parent's place for sale. That was every day really at the same time I worked. But I appreciated even limited work at my clinic at Serratus but with no vaccines yet, it was nerve-wracking. So many people just didn't go out or were under restrictions.

Then the second wave hit in October and for my parent's it was awful as they went to hospital with Covid 19 and I was in isolation as well. They ended up being in various hospitals from Victoria to Grace to St. Boniface Hospital. As their house sold at same time they were in terrible shape, I had to empty their seniors home as it was apparent that any recovery would be in a personal care home.

It was a scary and emotional time and I suffered in health even as I worked to get my parent's safely out of hospital. My parents are in a personal care home. Covid still has a impact there. A man died last week. People with vaccines are still vulnerable but single doses are not enough and double doses in seniors still mean you can get quite sick and lose the battle.

I thank goodness for my clinic at Serratus. I have not been idle the last year. Been working on projects while helping parents. paying the bills, seeing clients and isolating to keep myself and everyone safe.

As we get back to more normal, I can't wait to see my colleagues at work again. 

St. Vital Centre Plan for Sears

Two years.

It took this long to do something with in St. Vital Centre with the 130,000 square foot Sears site on the north side of the mall. In the picture above, the Sears is unshaded at the top.

It hasn't been much of a secret of what is coming to the Sears. Marshalls/HomeSense will take up 40,000 square feet and 25,000 square feet will be a Goodlife Fitness. They will both occupy two floors in a configuration yet to be revealed. Even though that covers quite a bit of the Sears space, there are two remaining retailers coming which haven't announced yet.

The Marshalls/HomeSense and Goodlife Fitness should be open in the spring on this year. Already the evidence of windows being built out to face the city can be seen under construction. This is very likely a group exercise studio. Signage is expected in March.

In addition to the aforementioned new tenants are two others Winnipeggers are familiar with. Warehouse One has moved into the mall and Dynacare has opened close to the entrance of the Silver City theatres. This will probably not be too bad during weekday hours when movies don't kick into high gear till later in the day.

There is a bus terminus fairly close by which is helpful and the mall has had a friendly seniors walk early in morning which could all contribute to this Dynacare location being well suited. I was a bit more disdainful of the Seasons of Tuxedo location being distance to the mall and in a very busy restaurant parking lot.

Warehouse One is in the end east corridor where more fashion stores are opposite Garage. The successful Winnipeg retailer has generally avoided pricey malls but suffice to say, St. Vital needs retailers who know how to sale. And this one does.

The retail sector keeps taking steps forward and backward. More backward for certain. The malls need people and companies like Dynacare and and Goodlife bring people in during quieter times for malls. The first thing in the morning group exercises or the blood test after fasting will have people coming regularly. For several restaurants and retailers it will be a boon.

St. Vital has had several other closures. There are broken teeth throughout the mall but momentum looks good and by mid-fall, they will have their game face ready for Christmas.

It remains to be seen whether Polo Park gets their act together with their own empty Sears which is 3X bigger.

Forever 21 to Close All Stores in Canada

The first store opened in Winnipeg in 2011 at Polo Park. It was a massive 34,000 square feet and crowds lined up at 2 AM to go inside. It was joined by Forever 21 Red at Outlet Collection of Winnipeg at Seasons of Tuxedo in 2017. That store was 26,000 square feet.

Now all 44 stores in Canada will close as the U.S. struggles into bankruptcy. No word on how the Canadian stores were doing but it would not be the first times stores were closed in Canada to save the U.S. stores. Hello, Sears.

For Polo Park this represents a major blow. Both Kildonan Place and St. Vital Mall are going through multi-million developments to fill the Sears closures and re-fresh the malls. Garden City has already addressed their Sears problem and malls like Northgate have worked on the Zellers/Target closures.

Polo Park has done nothing yet and will go another Christmas without filling the spot of a major anchor. Now, another huge store is closing. Three malls in town have added fitness centers generally in the 30,000 square feet range. As far as Sears goes with its 300,000 square feet...who knows.

Retail as we know it is changing fast. Expect housing to go up in malls, on top of malls and on mall parking lots fast.

Kenaston Goodlife to Close and Relocate in 2020

Well, the news is officially out. Staff and members have been informed and now the public is being made aware. Kenaston Goodlife, the first co-ed for the company in Winnipeg is closing in 2020 and moving to their much larger location at Bishop Grandin. All staff will move to that club and present members will find the terms of the memberships continue in the new fitness centre. Obviously, every member of the gym should speak to managers to get details that are relevant to their own membership but it goes without saying that efforts are being made to make the process a smooth one.

Alas, the massage and athletic therapy clinic will not be making the move to the new club. Space at other clubs for Goodlife is also being re-purposed where at one time they all had massage therapy clinic rooms. Attempts were made to find me space but the nearly $30 million being spent means that every corner of the Goodlife clubs in the city is being examined to be competitive with the booming fitness in dusty. Where once there was several massage therapists working within Winnipeg clubs, I am the last along with my athletic therapy colleague. The last I heard I was the last in western Canada still working. Not sure about the country but could very well been the last one altogether.

I'm not bitter. At my club I worked with great colleague at the clinic such as Cherlaine and Jamie. For the most recent years I have been a colleague of Sue and now her husband Eric was also coming aboard. My new lease had just started at the beginning of the month. I knew that there was talk about the future of the club but also felt that the Kenaston area was still growing. IKEA is only six years old. The Outlet Collection at three years. Housing, hotels and further development happen every month now.

Still, there is a heavy duty amount of competition being built. Goodlife is building three new clubs. One of those clubs, Portage and Main, will be a re-location across the street. Expansion of their old club which took a full floor of the RBC tower was not permissible. St. Vital Mall's club will be a completely new club and so it seemed was the Bishop Grandin one.

Still, what to do with Kenaston? With all the new building taking place, Goodlife Kenaston had three choices: 1st was to spend a lot of money and upgrade the club within its footprint. 2nd was spend a lot of money and strip down the club to become discount sister company Fit 4 Less. 3rd was close the club and re-locate all staff to the new club and save a recruitment process and add to staff for the large location.

It is important to know that Goodlife does not own the Kenaston site. A new lease would have to be signed and the terms of which might not have been to meet profitability criteria after club investments. Goodlife Kenaston was built in spring of 2008 and was a giant in its day. People came from all over the city and even outside it to work-out in. Goodlife now has several clubs including  Grant Park. The heady days that lasted years was only going to continue if Goodlife Kenaston had a long term plan.

In the end supersized clubs like Bishop Grandin cost a lot of money and need a lot of staff. The re-location plan and opportunity to move jobs over and not go through a massive recruitment and training program as well as spend more money on Kenaston upgrades won out.

None of this will happen immediately. Construction being what it is will mean that sometime in early 2020 all this will take place. A grand opening will take place and the final days of operation at Kenaston will have a final deadline. As for myself, I will continue to operate for some time yet. However, the company has freed me to seek a new location either as an employee or as a business clinic. At least half my clients are Goodlife members but I've been operating as an independent business now for two years. Members will have to find a non-club option for their injury and maintenance therapy. The new club will have hydrotherapy for relaxation massage.

As for the old club, I guess that will be up to Terracon which owns it. It is in a business park that has been quite successful. It doesn't stand to reason that another fitness center would want to jump in there. It could be ideal for many uses. There have been a few companies bursting at the seams in the park that might be all over that building.

Before going further, I've identified the club as being Bishop Grandin but the district it is being built on is called Refinery. No, not an oil refinery but sugar. Or at least at one time it was part of Manitoba Sugar lands. I suggested Sugarland for the district but was shot down. Maybe not ideal for a fitness center.

In the days of supersized clubs arriving in 2020, they all have much more of everything and beyond. Unlike Kenaston, Refinery will hot yoga, a pool, a high intensity work out area and a ninja obstacle course. In addition, it will have boxing. Understandably, even with a transfer of experienced staff from Kenaston, it will have a layer of staffing needed for support of maintenance, group exercise and personal training.

It will be Winnipeg's largest Goodlife. Safe to say that a real battle is shaping up for Winnipeg for fitness centers. Millions are being spent and people will benefit as their work-out choices evolve and change.

Goodlife, Shapes and soon to arrive Altea will compete hard in southwest Winnipeg. I will miss Kenaston Goodlife when it closes. Many good people and members over the years and it was once the biggest and best. I might be the last Registered Massage Therapist left in the west and quite possibly the country when they turn out the lights at the club.

I'll be good. Leaving on good terms. I own my own business. I do other things as well with other business ventures. I have great colleagues and good friends and support from family. Got months left before I am out in the world but this is Winnipeg. In the city we make our own futures. And relationship are built forever.

Three New Goodlife Fitness Locations for Winnipeg 2019/2020

Safe to say that Winnipeg is experiencing a building boom when it comes to fitness center across the city. The reasons for this vary but in part it can be explained as community centers not having nearly enough space or resources for a mature market of people wanting exercise centers. After graduating from schools and universities the choices for the adult fitness market are more often than not private fitness places. Moreover, how people keep fit can change as we age out of school and community sports like hockey, football and basketball. It is difficult to keep active with team sports due to work, family commitments or wear and tear.

Fitness is a solo thing save for joining group exercises such as yoga, cycling or dance/weight classes. We can still do our regular stuff such as swimming and biking, gardening and golfing but Canada is a winter country and daylight hours wane away so have created an infrastructure of indoor recreation facilities nation-wide.

Until recently you would really only be able to point to the Y as being the one true national fitness center. However, the Y kind of gives away its mission statement. It skews young and always will. It is a family friendly place and make no apologies for it. And over the years many of their facilities and services have upgraded and they do their job very well.

Goodlife, on the other hand, is a genuine Canadian coast to coast fitness center with a large presence in Winnipeg. That presence is about to get bigger. Goodlife is going to spend $30 million on two new clubs, relocation of one club and renovations on the rest. And by big, that means big. As reported already here on this blog, a 60,000 square foot club is going up on Bishop Grandin between Pembina Highway and Waverley along the north side. It will be double the size of Grant Park and Kenaston locations.

The Bishop Grandin location above will have a women's only section, a pool, a hot yoga studio and meditation space. The fitness center is scheduled to open in December. It would appear to be that it is in a race with the Altea fitness center which looks to be complete about the same time in the Bridgwater area on far south Kenaston. The Altea will be even larger and feature its own exclusive amenities. The continuing residential development and density building along Kenaston and now Bishop Grandin might generate the population to sustain the large facilities. In the case of Bridgwater, this growing area seems to have an anemic public recreation area so Altea might be only place for several years to come. As far as Bishop Grandin, the new bus rapid transit and high rises are right along the route the new Goodlife will stand on.

The Kenaston Goodlife is likely to benefit from a huge residential component in Kapyong and along Sterling Lyon while the Grant Park location is surrounded by apartments and is also adjacent to bus rapid transit. A lot of thought has gone into these multi-million dollar developments. Winnipeg is growing and the competition to serve the city means we are seeing some top notch building taking place.

Goodlife has indicated clubs in existence will be getting renovations. In this heavy competition, fitness centers will have to look to upgrade faster lest people look elsewhere. As far as other fitness centers like Shapes, Planet Fitness, Snap or Anytime Fitness, they will have to compete on price, location and amenities. Big won't always win the race. For those not in a car, the presence of a gym in a place such as the Osborne Village will be the choice they often make.

It is obvious Winnipeg has seen a dramatic increase in fitness centers across every geographic area but one area has been sadly lacking: St. Vital. The rumours have been true all along and Goodlife will be building in St. Vital Mall likely in the old Sears location. The location will be 27,000 square feet and be ready in spring on 2020.

The third new club will be at 330 Main Street in what people still call the Trizec building. It will be part of the residential/commercial component being building above Winnipeg Square and will be ready in summer of 2020. Once it is complete, the old Goodlife in what was the TD/Canwest building will be shut down. The new club will be about 24,000 square feet.

Once complete the new clubs will add about 200 jobs to the market.

The growth of Winnipeg by the tens of thousands in recent years and a desire to get healthy will probably fuel this competition for the next few years. It is interesting to note that malls such as Winnipeg Square, Garden City, Grant Park and now St. Vital Mall are adding fitness centers to drive traffic. It is difficult to imagine it happening 10 years ago in the city.

New Stores for Garden City Shopping Centre

The construction at Garden City Mall continues so everyone should be careful. A pedestrian fatality took place this past week near where work was done and is still being investigated.

As reported in this blog long ago, Seafood City is coming to Winnipeg and is being constructed within the footprint of the old Sears. The Filipino grocer will be complete this summer. It will be accompanied by Bulk Barn and a Michaels store leaving only three other spots left in the old Sears area left to leased.

Garden City is anchored on the other side of the mall by Canadian Tire and Winners. There are a few other vacancies within the mall left but suffice to say it is the biggest investment in the mall in decades and it is the first former Sears to have something built on the market.

After the Northgate Mall upgrade and addition of Save on Foods, Garden City could not afford to be complacent.

The closure of numerous national stores across North America has had landlords scrambling. Garden City and Grant Park malls have added Goodlife Fitness locations to attack crowds earlier and later into their shopping area. At 45 years old. Garden City was in need of an upgrade and looks to make continued improvements in 2019. Bulk Barn and Michaels are to open in the fall of this year.

Wheelhouse Cycle Club Coming to Seasons of Tuxedo

Wheelhouse Cycle Club is scheduled to open this winter at Seasons of Tuxedo. The building is well under construction right now and signage should be soon. It joins the crowded gym market where Goodlife and Altea have already announced two very large clubs in the south Winnipeg area.

Across North America some specialization in fitness has seen yoga carve out a niche and so it goes with spin class cycling. Wheelhouse is a Saskatchewan company and Winnipeg is its third location.

The Outlet Collection mall is still very much a new mall and building around continues at a brisk pace including a large amount of multi-unit housing. In fact all along Sterling Lyon housing is being built. It will be interesting what the next census reports.

There is no doubt going to be a shake-up in the fitness industry soon. Much investment is taking place in clubs currently operating and many apartments are providing fitness equipment. It is possible demand will keep pace but it is just as likely a price war will emerge. It really depends on how many clubs are built. In fairness, we were undeserved for many years. Now, there are big choices out there to be made.

Expect an announcement for Wheelhouse opening soon.

Biggest Goodlife Fitness Coming to Bishop Grandin Crossing

I have been following Bishop Grandin Crossing moves through city planning but it has been a long, slow process. It goes back nearly five years now on the site of the old Sugar Beet Lands proximate to the north of Bishop Grandin as it connects to the west of Pembina Highway. It is easily seen on the drive on Bishop Grandin between Waverley and Pembina Highway.

The Bus Rapid Transit overpass has been under construction along with the route these past two years. It nears completion even now. The long planning process and master plan for the site is done and now we are getting an idea of who the new residents of this mixed office, retail and housing development will be.

Make no mistake about this. Bishop Grandin Crossing is as massive a development as Seasons of Tuxedo is. It involves an extension of two city streets into the site as well as access to Bishop Grandin. It will also include bike paths, sidewalks and of course, the BRT station. It is huge.

The first confirmed tenant of the site will be Goodlife Fitness with the largest location in Manitoba at 60,000 square feet. To put that into perspective of the other clubs: the bigger Goodlife Fitness buildings in Winnipeg are around 25,000 to 30,000 square feet.

This move by Goodlife has been long in the making but hastened by the announcement of Altea Fitness being built in Bridgwater which will also be 60,000 square feet. Lest anyone think there is not enough people to sustain either gym or will possibly feed of the other gym locations, keep this in mind: the population is going up in the area in the tens of thousands.

Bishop Grandin Crossing will house a great many residential buildings with a few thousand people calling it home. Moreover, this is an invitation for people just across the river in St. Vital to have access to services like Goodlife that have yet been able to find space in the packed suburb.

Is there a limit to all this growth? Sure there is. The area that might be affected is Kapyong Barracks. If the thinking there was retail, it might not be able to find what they are looking for. More on that in another post.

As for Bishop Grandin Crossing, all the pieces are now being put together and having a major national gym like Goodlife locate there is just the beginning.

Altea Active Fitness Coming to Bridgwater in 2019

There was talk about it in July at a zoning meeting but no major announcement till now that a major fitness center was set to be built in Bridgwater. It will likely be the second largest fitness facility in Manitoba at 80,000 square feet and costing $30 million. The largest gym in the city in the University of Manitoba's Active Living Centre at 100,000 square feet.

Bridgwater is one of the fastest growing parts of the city and as such, there is growing demand for services and shops. There have been complaints about the lack of city provided recreation in the area. Local officials have assured that this won't be left completely to the private sector to provide.

The Altea appears to be a branching off by the principals of the Movati Fitness group from Ontario. David Wu and and Michael Nolan have been spokesmen  in regards to the company. Nolan was once Canada's most decorated decathlete till retire a number of years ago.

The three floor gym is aimed at families. No price point has been suggested yet but back in July it was indicated that it was in the range of Winnipeg's YM/YWCAs.  The amenities will feature a all women's fitness area, a children's play area, a saltwater pool and splash pad, climbing wall, yoga, weight room and cardio, a Himalayan salt inhalation room, skating and a ninja course.

The competition for fitness members is likely to get heated between Shapes, Goodlife and Altea in the next several months. And this can only be good for everyone in Winnipeg.

Autumnbee's Pizza Closed

After so many years of construction at Grant Park, so many changes, it is not surprising that some businesses inside were just not able to survive. Autumnbee's Pizza in the former Pizza Place location just down from the Landmark Theatre has closed. It might have been inevitable that this would have been the fate. Almost all full service restaurants in malls that don't have their own entrances to the outside are gone now.

It probably was particularly cruel to see Fionn Macool's going up in the parking lot, yes another casual dining competitor so close.

It used to be that the old Pizza Place was one of the few places in the dense neighbourhood where you could get a bite before a movie or the Grant Park arena or in the restaurant desert that was River Heights.

For the first time in a very long while it appears that Grant Park has achieved a final lay-out that should be sustained for a number of years. Winners, Canadian Tire and Goodlife are all in place and should be there for some time to come.

Neighbourhood changes south of the mall are also likely to bring more people to the area and the mall is well positioned now with a complete fresh look.

It is sad to see the longtime pizza joint close down but is just a matter of time that we see the movie theatre become licensed and begin serving more diverse food samplings. They may have closed just in time. It remains to be seen in another restaurant takes over the site or whether it will go retail.

Fionn MacCool's Coming to Grant Park in June

Grant Park Mall continues to see construction as Goodlife Fitness is preparing the remainder of the old Target location for a fall opening. Winners is also under construction beside the Liquor Mart with an opening date of December of this year.

In the parking lot beside Cambrian Credit Union along Grant Avenue construction is taking place. Today we learn it is a Fionn MacCool's restaurant. It is slated to open in June and will be out 4300 square feet. It will feature an outdoor patio. The Irish pub already has a location on Regent since 2014 in the former Kelsey's location and soon for Brandon.

The restaurant started in 1996 in Canada and is now coast to coast. The addition of a location at Grant Park should cap off several years of construction and retail upheaval at the 45 year old mall. By the end of the year the mall is likely to be fully leased with a configuration and anchor businesses will be around for some time.

Anytime Fitness Coming to Polo Park and Osborne Village

Former American Apparel

On the Anytime Fitness list of future clubs, it says that the former American Apparel at 108 Osborne and the former Blue Bomber seasonal store at 915 Empress will be seeing new gyms in the 5000 square foot range very soon.

I have written on this blog how important the fitness industry has been in changing how retail and malls appeal to consumers. Goodlife Fitness, Snap, Anytime Fitness, Orange and yoga studios are filling empty spaces and bringing people to various destinations.

Goodlife is well under way on construction at Grant Park mall and the mall will near fully leased soon.

In the last day, the largest Snap Fitness in North America located across the street from MTS Centre opened up their garage doors to the delight of passersby. That open style is certainly unfamiliar on Portage Avenue.

Osborne Village has been bemoaning the changes happening on their street. American Apparel had some concerned although the store's demise was international and had nothing to do with the location in general. Still, it was a large spot and it seemed like it might be a hard place to fill given the rent in the area. Some suggested it would only go if divided.

The Village's problem is too few landlords who established themselves very early on in the game and who want what the market will bear. That has been a lot in recent years. It is why some retailers have run to Corydon, Sherbrook and elsewhere to establish themselves.

There are certainly some gyms in condos in and around the Osborne Village. Snap is down the street and seems to be doing well. An Anytime Fitness in the middle of the population of the area should be a welcome addition. Given the growing density of the area, there should be enough room for two mid-size gyms.

Hope that Goodlife might come to the area is a stretch is not unfounded but it costs quite a bit of time and money to find the right location for the size gyms they require. It doesn't always require parking as noted by their Portage location but it really has to be right spot.

The vitality of Osborne should continue. Sustainable neighbourhoods can't only be swishy stores and restaurants.

The other Anytime is locating in the Walmart parking lot very near Polo Park. A series of stores have come and gone to the retail strip there so a change of pace is probably welcome. A few hotels are close by, lots of people shop and work in the area. A mid-size gym should work.

In this wired up world of online everything, the fitness industry is showing people still not want to go out. More retail areas are starting to catch on.

The De-Malling of the Northgate Mall Winnipeg

The Northgate Shipping Centre on McPhillips owned by a family outside of Manitoba seemed to be content for many years to slowly decline. The closure of the Zellers years earlier left a 120,000 square foot hole. Target snubbed it as a location and there it stood a testimony that the mall had seen better days.

It is difficult to say whether the take-over of the Zellers by Save-On-Foods was the impetus for rehabilitating the mall or whether the owners decided to make a change. Whatever the reason, $20 million has been allocated to de-mall Northgate Mall.

The first step was to find a replacement for the Zellers and that came in the form of the largest Save-On-Foods in Winnipeg. At 65,000 square feet and the added title of International to its names, it carries more products that any of the other stores of that company built thus far.

But that wasn't all.

The next step was to get tenants already on the mall to buy in to the full upgrade and attract new original stores. One of the notable add on will be Jollibee's, a Philippines-based fast food franchise that opens next week in two locations including Northgate. They will be Canada's first.

A new Tim Horton's will also be up to accommodate the coffee lovers of the area.

The enclosed part of the the L-shaped mall comes to an end. In its place will be the first location of Fit 4 Less by Goodlife, the discount arm of Goodlife Fitness. At first it was thought that Winnipeg first location for this division would be the Grant Park Mall but plans have since changed. Grant Park will get a large Goodlife Fitness and the Fit 4 less will occupy 25,000 square feet of Northgate Mall.

The city's only discount theatre Cinema City will continue to be an anchor in the mall and several longtime loyal tenants will get upgrades. Royal Bank, Reider Insurance and Medicine Shoppe pharmacy all factor into the re-furbished mall.

The northeast quadrant of the city has many people living it, lots of traffic down McPhillips but largely absent landlords in the last numbers years. Not a lot of love in terms of investing in the property in compared to Grant Park Mall, Charleswood Mall and along Pembina Highway.

It would seen that Northgate's investment has spurred Garden City Mall to action after years of neglect. Still, it would take quite a bit to beat the millions being spent at Northgate.

It is true that commuters will travel some distance to places like Polo Park but the need of good local grocers, pharmacists and coffee shops is always there. The danger for Northgate was that if they didn't invest, more and more stores and services would have left. Now, they might have the right mix and the un-mall style to rejuvenate retailing in the region. In fact, they have stores now that people will make a special trip for.

Snap Fitness to Open largest Location in Winnipeg

Dayton Building with new condos behind. Picture: Skyscrapers.com

323 Portage Avenue has seen a lot of nightclubs since the 1980s. The building built in 1955 and known as the Dayton building was originally a store and restaurant that lasted till 1983.

The decline on Portage Avenue reached a critical point for retailers on the north side in 1979. This was year that Winnipeg Square and Eaton Place (now Cityplace) opened. It was also the year St. Vital Shopping Centre and a year later Kildonan Place opened.

Portage Avenue became a street where the south side still was successful for retailers whereas the northside was marked by video arcades, an adult theatre and aging hotels.

Still, many people still came downtown for nightlife including movies, live theatre and retailing on the so investors turned the old Dayton's department store into Dayton's nightclub in 1984. Substantial renovations were made to the building to accommodate the specifications of the club including moving the entrance to the side street.

The bar proved a bit posh for Winnipeg and lasted two years during a recession before closing and re-opening as Times Nite Club. That club format lasted quite some time and was less formal. Winnipeg was going through a tough period of decline, however. There is a gap in my knowledge about how long the bar was there. It seems to me that there was another club in that location around 1991-1994 called Richard's American Bar before there was a return to the old name. Any help remember that era would be welcome.

A murder outside Times Nite Club in 1999 kind of affirmed that the area was getting dangerous. Coming in the same year as Eaton's closure, it marked a low point for downtown Winnipeg.

The arrival of the MTS Centre in 2004 assisted in stabilizing some of the restaurants in the area and breathed some life in what had been an angst filled time. The empty Eaton's building was subject to huge debate and ultimately was demolished in 2003 to make way for the new arena. Around 2007, Times Nite Club was renovated for $2 million and became Blush Ultraclub. It attracted a good crowd most weekends but by 2009 was really open weekends. In 2010 it closed.

The Winnipeg Jets arrived in 2011 and the crowds on game nights doubled in size. The Manitoba Moose attracted families whereas the Jets brought an older crowd willing  to spend money before and after games. It seemed a no brainer that a sports bar nearby would work. In 2011 the 4Play sports bar opened in the former Ultraclub space.

The concept lasted till 2012. Why did it fail? The problem was days when hardly anyone came in. And those early Jets days were a learning experience for people on finding before and after places to eat and drink for Jets games. 4Play Sports just wasn't able to get enough traffic throughout the week. The Palomino Club looked at relocating to the old 4Play location in 2015 but ultimately decided they'd better off on Main Street in the old Whisky Dix spot.

For a very long time 323 Portage Avenue's storefront sat empty opposite one of the busiest arenas in North America.

The wait to see what goes into 323 Portage Avenue is over. It has been announced that Snap Fitness is going to occupy just under 12,000 square feet of the front space facing out to MTS Centre. The back area remains unoccupied for the moment but 5,700 square feet awaits a new restaurant or club. Around $1 million in renovations is being done to accommodate the gym. It will include group exercise classes in Zumba and yoga. Weightlifting and boxing instruction will be available as well. And steam showers will be a popular amenity.

The new Snap Fitness will be North America's largest location for the franchise. It will be open 24 hours which is a first for downtown. Goodlife Fitness is already in a office tower at Portage and Main and the YMCA is west on Portage but both have more limited hours. The new Snap will be operated by an owner with three locations in the province already.
Restaurant and bars are a tough business at the best of times and a lot of hope was laid at the MTS Centre (2004) and Manitoba Hydro Place (2009) to generate traffic. They did. However, a true entertainment district was slow in coming. In 2010, the MTS Exhibition Center in the old Portage Village Inn/A&B Sound Building showed that people would go in great numbers to the area with the right attraction such as Bodies and Titanic. The success led to the construction of Centrepoint which will add the last component on their storefront when Brown's Socialhouse opens in 2017.

Downtown Winnipeg is enormous in size relative to the other cities. It is marked by areas of vitality and then along certain streets it is long stretches of surface parking and nothing else. There are more people living downtown in the Avenue building, the student residences at the University of Winnipeg, Red River College and Waterfront Drive. Still, it is hard to get the connectivity that was once Portage Avenue all the way from Portage and Main to the University of Winnipeg.

Snap Fitness fills a niche that makes the city operate beyond regular hours. People feel safer when there are more people in the surrounding area. Empty storefronts are like missing teeth in a smile. The addition of a gym across from the MTS Centre is a good sign that a neighbourhood is forming.

Winners Coming to Grant Park Shopping Mall

There has been talk about it for some time but a Winners store is indeed opening in the space between McNally Robinson and Red River Co-Op grocery store at the Grant Park Mall. A series of store closures and moves inside the mall and of ones facing out to Grant Avenue are signs of the logistical chess game in preparing the mall for another key anchor.

Modern Taco Company is closed now and Magiccuts has a sign inside the mall indicating where they will be moving to in the future. Once all the spaces out front are vacated, the interior walls will be removed to create the larger space. It is unknown whether this includes an expansion outward to the same line as McNally. Both Shopper Drug Mart and the former Target also pushed out northward to create space in past years.

It seems Grant Park has been under construction for years and in truth, it has been. Only now one of the last corridors is being modernized in the same design as the rest of the mall. Canadian Tire is now open in the spot that Target once occupied. However, they did not take the entire space in July leaving room for Goodlife Fitness to join them on the east side.

Goodlife Fitness will have to do some work on the space as there are literally no windows or entrances out front to the space. Nor is there a trailer out front yet selling memberships. Expect to that and work being done soon.

The addition of Winners will make Grant Park Mall a strange hybrid of big and small stores. Not wholly a big box mall or traditional mall, it keeps evolving and has has big money spent on it to achieve success. Contrast this with what has been happening at Garden City Mall which has seen a steady decline that borders on neglect.

There is no timetable on Winners but the opening seems likely in 2017.

Fit4Less Joining Goodlife Fitness at Grand Park Shopping Centre

It was a bit of a mystery what was going to go in the remaining space of the old Target at Grant Park Shopping Centre. Canadian Tire has just one month till its opening July 1st and takes up the majority of the space. What was left was 35,000 or so of leaseable space.

Then along came Goodlife Fitness to announce they were going to build a 25,000 square foot Co-Ed location in part of the space. That left 12,000 square feet of leasable space.

Today, Grant Park announced that Goodlife Fitnesss's sister company will be opening in Manitoba for the first time and occupying all that remains of the 12,000 square foot space. Fit4Less by GoodLife is a low cost fitness option with lowest prices in the country. This will only be the third time in Canada that it has operated side by side with a full Goodlife Fitness.

From the press release:

 “This is going to be one of the most beautiful and unique fitness clubs in Manitoba,” says David ‘Patch’ Patchell-Evans, Founder and CEO of GoodLife Fitness. “Winnipeg is such a diverse city, so it makes sense to acknowledge that by offering a variety of fitness options too. We believe that by offering these clubs side-by-side we will give even more residents in the city the opportunity to live a fit and healthy life.”

“GoodLife and Fit4Less by GoodLife will be fantastic additions to our shopping centre,” said Sandra Hagenaars, General Manager of Grant Park Shopping Centre. “Not only will these clubs encourage multiple visits per week to the mall, they will further enhance Grant Park’s unique mix of service and retail tenants.”

 The new combined Goodlife should be open sometime in the new year.

Goodlife Fitness Coming to St. James

3193 Portage Avenue Superstore

Goodlife Fitness continues their expansion in Canada which has taken them coast to coast and made them the largest fitness company in Canada.

They have been looking at expanding in several parts of the city only to be thwarted by the lack of ideal space or bigger retail giants swooping in and grabbing spots. When Target shut down, Goodlife put in an offer on many of the properties only to be re-buffed. In Winnipeg, Target Grant Park went to Canadian Tire, Southdale Target went to Walmart and Target Polo Park went to owners of Polo Park. Kildonan remains unclaimed but Goodlife is already just down the street from there.

A number of weeks ago, Goodlife listed the latest place for their expansion in Winnipeg and it is in St. James.  The address they listed is 3193 Portage Avenue which is home to Real Canadian Superstore.

Goodlife and Superstore are old friends. In Winnipeg, the first two Goodlife Women's Only gyms were set up in or on Superstore properties on McPhillips and in Sargent down from Polo Park. Those clubs remain with the company today.

The Superstore in St. James on Polo Park is an odd duck. It is one of a very few Superstores with an underground parking lot on Canada. Built in 1989 for around $10 million, the company initially tried to buy an abandoned adjacent school site of the St. James school division but were re-buffed. They went ahead anyways and built a heated parkade instead and found success as one of the first large sized stores in the 250,000 square foot range in the west end of the city.

Site of Goodlife Expansion?

The old school site did eventually get sold and developed and on the corner facing Portage is a Crosstown Credit Union. At the back of the site now is a condo. In between the space as seen above is a space listed for development and could accommodate a 20,000 square foot building. This is the exact size Goodlife needs for a co-ed gym.

There is already a Shapes Women's gym and a Y on west Portage but they do serve different crowds. The construction of a new co-ed fitness center right in the middle of neighbourhood on the south side is likely to be very welcome.

I am not entirely sure of the logistics of the project that will be complete next year. The configuration of the parking lot will be interesting. Look to see zoning plans for it soon!

What Next for Winnipeg's Old Target In Southdale?

Southdale Target Winnipeg Closed

The first of the Targets closed in Winnipeg at the Southdale location on Lakewood. The site had been a former Zellers and now it is being cleared of anything not nailed down. The option of what goes in the location seem to vary.

The stores unlikely to locate there are Canadian Tire or Giant Tiger which already have locations just down the street. Also in the area is a Shopper's Drug Mart. The thought of a grocery store as well seems limited with a Co-Op right next door.

The word is that Goodlife Fitness might be interested in the location but it might not be the entire store footprint which is around 100,000 square feet. This might actually be a good use if people examine how busy the Regent and Kenaston locations of Goodlife are.

There is a Pizza Hut in the corner of the lot and a McDonald's on the other corner. A Shell station and other retail borders the Target. It is unlikely the entire site will merit a re-design so the Target location itself will be what is changed.

Southdale Centre is an important commercial district but it is not a mall or a power center and the number of retailers who might be interested in the site will be small.

In the month of May all of the Targets will be closed and it will be a battle between landlords to fill spaces. In some cases that won't be difficult. In other cases, it will not be easy at all. Locations like Polo Park are probably not going to have a problem getting tenants. Southdale will have to think outside the box.

Two years ago the retail sector was on the upswing and the Canadian economy looked good. A downturn in oil revenues and consumers pulling in their spending and we see Target running back across the border. How fast the Target landlords find new tenants will be an indication how resilient the Canadian economy is.