Norwich Fitness leaves downtown to take over Summit Fitness on Wisconsin Avenue – Norwich Bulletin
NORWICH — Gina Facchini, owner of Norwich Fitness Center, is excited for her gym’s next step.
“It’s a very, very good space in the heart of downtown, and it’s definitely like my first baby,” Facchini said. “I’m going to miss it, but I’m excited to move on to bigger and better things.”
This month, Facchini will move from downtown Norwich, by Foundry 66, to the business park at 2 Wisconsin Ave. Facchini has taken over operations of Summit Fitness, as of Tuesday, from owners Henry and Jolene Bowers, who are retiring by the end of the month.
Jolene Bowers said she started talking with Facchini as they were looking for a new owner, and Facchini’s experience, from running her gym downtown to her time in the National Guard, made her the right fit.
“We wanted to find the right people, and we feel she and her organization are, so it’s time to hand over the baton,” Bowers said.
For the time being, Bowers said much of what Summit offers will stay the same, but Facchini is adding a CrossFft area in part of the gym.
More:Jobs are recovering in Conn., but Norwich area businesses still finding hiring challenges
Facchini was interested because she was already planning on moving into a bigger space. She was attracted to Summit Fitness because it has a basketball court.
“I was looking around at warehouses, seeing what’s available in Norwich,” Facchini said.
Facchini said there was a drop in membership with her gym early on in the pandemic, but by the time youth programs got going again at Norwich Fitness Center, the gym was packed. It became hard to run youth programs, CrossFit and open gym in the downtown space at the same time.
More:What’s next for downtown Norwich boxing gym, convenience store, after Main Street fire?
“I had to run things separate, and I could make more streams of income if I could do this all at once,” Facchini said.
Facchini also said she always wanted to open a sportsplex, as playing sports helped her through tough times when she was in foster care when she was young.
Preston resident Steve Manfredi, one of the regulars and coaches at Norwich Fitness Center, said the new, bigger space is a major improvement, and it might help make CrossFit approachable.
More:Adult-use marijuana sales will begin in CT this year. What does that look like in Norwich?
“If people don’t want to do CrossFit, since it’s not for everybody, you’ll get to see what CrossFit actually is, instead of assuming,” Manfredi said, just after taking down gymnastic rings in the Fitness Center on Friday.
As for Colchester resident Ralph Bianco, who has worked out at Summit for 11 years, he said he’ll miss Jolene and Henry Bowers, and wishes them well in retirement.
“I just hope the new management will take as just as good care and management as what they did,” Bianco said.
Kevin Brown, president of the Norwich Community Development Corporation, said there aren’t any immediate plans for a new occupant in the downtown space.
However, considering that one of Foundry 66’s missions is to give businesses a place to grow until they can move out on their own in Norwich, Brown said Norwich Fitness’ move is a success.
More:Norwich Reid and Hughes building not forgotten: City works to find new developer
“Gina and Norwich Fitness is another example of that; matriculating out of this ecosystem, the Foundry and the Sunlight building,” Brown said. “I think this whole Norwich community is happy for her, and looking for her to succeed in her own place.”
Looking ahead, Facchini wants to familiarize herself with the the Summit Fitness regulars and survey their needs before making changes to the gym. However, she wants to upgrade the gym to be more user-friendly, replace equipment if necessary, and, later on, put a football field in the back.
As for Jolene Bowers, she’ll have the time now to take classes at her old gym.
“It’s tough working out at your own facility,” Jolene Bowers said. “You get the oughts; I ought to be doing this, I ought to be doing that, and you can’t concentrate on the workout.”
