Local gym vows to keep fighting COVID orders; has no business license

• City of West Kelowna rejects gym's business license
• Gym wants to be declared essential
• Says its membership and public supports their stance

A West Kelowna gym has taken a high-profile stance of defiance against the latest COVID-19 Provincial Health Order (PHO) and is currently operating without a business license.

It is not immediately clear what enforcement measures Interior Health or the City of West Kelowna will take.

Iron Energy Gym has vowed to continue to operate and has done so since new measures were announced on Dec. 23 that ordered all gyms closed. The gym has blacked out its windows and customers are required to knock on the door to gain entry.

The owners provided Kelowna10 with an email from the City of West Kelowna stating its application for a 2022 business license was rejected because the city learned the gym had failed to comply with the PHO.

“These people are here to let off steam. It’s their therapy,” co-owner Kirsten Mark told Kelowna10, while referring to their clients. She said they have 1,350 members.

She and partner Brian Mark, also a co-owner, have argued it’s wrong for the authorities to deprive the public their physical and mental outlet, and gyms like theirs have done everything right in terms of social distancing, mask wearing and the training of staff around hygiene protocols.

“Most of our members here are also here for their mental health,” she said. “This is so much more than about our business, this is about the community’s mental health.”

The couple point to their own personal struggles as support for how the gym helped them. Mark said he has recovered from substance abuse and finds the gym a staple in his life, while Kirsten said she had an eating disorder, and the gym gives her an important escape. The couple said they have been vaccinated, as has their daughter.

The gym’s defiance of the PHO was posted on social media earlier this week. It's since garnered extensive mainstream media coverage and Mark said there has been near total support for his stance.

“We’ve had thousands of responses and virtually everybody says [the order] is wrong,” Mark said.

He is calling on West Kelowna Mayor Gord Milsom to sit down with him so, as he put it, he can have a conversation with him about the importance to the community of keeping gyms open.

Kelowna10 reached out to the City of West for comment but has not received a response.

Interior Health will 'take further steps'

Kelowna RCMP confirmed it had responded to two complaints from the public over the Christmas holidays about the gym being open and forwarded that information to Interior Health (IH).

In a statement to Kelowna10 late Wednesday, Interior Health said its expectation is for all fitness facilities to comply with the order.

“Now is the time we all need to work together to reduce the impact of Omicron in our communities, “ it said.

IH said since the order was issued it has followed up with a total of 15 facilities and has issued five warning letters. RCMP have issued $2,300 fines to date to gyms in the Interior.

“Further steps will be taken for gyms who remain open despite initial enforcement actions, “ it said.

The statement added, "Interior Health recognizes the importance of physical activity for people, both physically and emotionally, and we urge people to look at alternatives as we collectively reduce the risk of further COVID-19 exposures in our communities. A number of fitness facilities have already done this, with virtual classes and workouts."

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, when asked about the ongoing need to close gyms, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said these facilities had proven to be "amplifiers" of the virus, especially because of the age demographic who frequented them.

“The reputable [gyms] understand they are not going to be putting their staff and clients at risk,” Henry said.