Capacity Bump Step Forward For Maxed Out Medford Gym

MEDFORD, MA — Steve Stabile expects the line outside his gym to get a little smaller now that Gov. Charlie Baker is raising capacity limits on businesses. Stabile, who owns Blink Fitness franchises in Medford and Beverly, says gym-goers have had to wait outside up to 15 minutes since the 25 percent cap was placed on businesses in December.

"People will really appreciate the fact that they will not have to wait in line," Stabile said.

Blink Fitness has been treading water since the start of the pandemic. Stabile opened the Beverly location in December 2018, followed by Medford a month later, meaning both gyms were in their relative infancy when the pandemic forced them to close.

The shutdown cost Blink four months of business, and the gyms had to cut some costs, whether it was letting go of members for nonpayment or lowering membership dues to $10. But Stabile has been fortunate in other areas – he brought back about 95 percent of his staff after the initial closure, and the health and safety measures he implemented have so far been successful.

"Knock on wood, we haven't had any clusters coming back in," Stabile said.

But the gyms have broken even when it comes to cancellations and new memberships, which is challenging for a new business.

"We're not growing," Stabile said. "We're just on a treadmill trying to run a marathon."

He hopes that will start to turn around once Baker's latest order goes into effect. On Monday, many indoor businesses, including gyms, will be able to operate at 40 percent. The 25 percent restriction that has been in place since Christmas – a fail-safe against the post-holiday surge of cases – will be allowed to expire.

Baker said "dramatic declines" in coronavirus test rates and hospitalizations across the state allow for the gradual easing of restrictions.

"There's a misperception of how gyms are, and it's really put a damper on our growth," Stabile said.

Stabile feels he has responded to the pandemic the right way. His gyms donated extra PPE and hand sanitizer to the police and fire departments and nursing homes. He implemented strict safety requirements, including taking gym-goers' temperature before they enter, installing dividers between equipment, enforcing face covering rules and cleaning regularly.

And he "did not charge a penny" while the gym was closed, he said.

"We're hoping when life gets back to normal that [customers] will look at us and see how well we operated the gym," Stabile said. "When they're ready to come back we'll be here for them."