Two of the largest climbing gym developers in the US have announced they will be opening new facilities later this year and in 2018.
Central Rock – Framingham
First up is Central Rock’s new bouldering-only facility in Framingham, Massachutes, a suburb of Boston. The gym is expected to include 10,000 square feet of bouldering terrain as well as fitness and yoga space. The gym, which is billed as a “high-end bouldering gym” for adults, their planning application reads.
Brothers Ed and Joe Hardy stressed that “This is NOT a facility for birthday parties or youth events. This is a gym for new and serious climbers to practice their sport and get fit.”
Central Rock expects to invest about $500,000 to improve the site, according to paperwork filed by the town.
The Massachutes-based company is also in the process of building a full-service climbing facility in Syracuse, New York which plans to open in late fall of 2017.
Ed Hardy told Syracuse.com that Syracuse appealed to him because, like Worcester, it has a lot of college students, who, along with young professionals, are among the most active participants in the sports of indoor and outdoor rock climbing.
“Syracuse was kind of the next logical step,” he said. When finished, these two facilities will bump Central’s total gyms to nine and possibly become the third largest climbing gym developer by total climbing square feet, in the US (preceded by Earth Treks and Touchstone respectively).
Central Rock Gym Syracuse Tour
Central Rock Gym Syracuse Tour! 15,000 sq. ft of climbing! Not in video are the fitness areas, yoga room, party room, bathrooms (lockers and showers), and retail area. Get ready Syracuse climbers!! Please spread the word. Opening this Fall!
Posted by Central Rock Syracuse on Monday, May 22, 2017
Touchstone – Pasadena
After several false starts, Touchstone has announced they will now open a full-service climbing facility in the city of Pasadena. The 28,000 square foot climbing facility just north of downtown Pasadena will be the largest in the company’s fleet and will be the second sport climbing facility for Touchstone in Southern California.
“Pasadena is one of the very first markets we looked at in the LA area,” Senior Manager, Jeffery Bowling told CBJ. “We’ve been trying to find a building that would suit our needs for several years, and we are really excited to have landed on this location. The new facility will open sometime in 2018.
While that facility is being built, Touchstone is busy getting the walls ready at their Burbank gym, dubbed Verdigo Boulders, which opens sometime later this year.
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