Small gyms in East County of San Diego are dying out because of the zoning ordinances. 

I own a small gym in the city of El Cajon with 70 members. Our youngest member is 6 years old and our oldest is 76. We created a safe haven for mums, young girls, people struggling with metal health and obesity. We teach girls safely how to lift weights and that gym environment does not have to be scary. Our community is supportive and non judgmental. It is very hard to find a gym like ours.  However, we are facing the closure of our gym by October, simply because zoning ordinance does not allow gyms in industrial spaces in San Diego. There are plenty of properties available on the market that would be suitable but we are not allowed to lease them. 

Big companies like biotech and manufacturing companies who can afford commercial properties are being allowed to lease. How is this fair?

My gym is female owned and we don’t make a lot of profit. Every penny we make, we put straight back into the gym. However we have managed to survive Covid and have not ever missed a payment on our  lease. We are good citizens with exceptional credit scores and clean records. Our gym has been successful since 2016 and we want to continue helping people. 

It is clear to see that money is more important to the city than health, wellness and safety.  

Please help us change the zoning ordinance and make health and safety of citizens a priority.