Email to spa members dated 10/17/2010

[Mary Paterson]

Aloha members and fitness enthusiasts,

I had hoped to have some significant news to share with you this week
about all the work our dedicated committee has been working on –
however I’m sorry to say, we really don’t have anything concrete set
up for us all to move to at the end of this month. I'm tremendously
gratified by the depth of commitment by everyone involved in this
project and are still hopeful that something great will come out of
all this. We have made some important contacts and will continue to
pursue all avenues.

Here’s a synopsis of things we’ve been working on:

Pool
The Makai pool is nearing completion and should have its CO
(Certificate of Occupancy) soon. After a period of time when they
need to see what activity is like from their own guests, we are
hopeful that they will offer some memberships to our dedicated
swimmers. There is no formal timeline, but we have been told they are
looking for a management company to run the pool. We really need to
be patient while they figure things out and we promise to keep you
informed.

Fitness facility
We were truly hoping things would work out for the two developers
Melody mentioned in her last mail out. They have a wonderful business
plan to open a fitness facility in Princeville, however, as often
happens on Kauai, their plans have been delayed due to a number of
circumstances and there is no concrete evidence this is going to
resolve any time soon.

This leaves us once again needing to take another look at other
potential locations on the North Shore. One that could probably be
retrofitted fairly quickly and no special use permits or permission
needed is at the Princeville Shopping Center. It’s not totally ideal
because of the parking and being on the second storey, but it does
have potential. The feasibility of this location will depend on the
lease rent (which is being negotiated), plus the renovation and
operating costs. The other location we are following up on is the old
Hanalei Courthouse. Since this is a State building, there may be a
lot of hoops to go through, but it has apparently been vacant for some
time. We have also met with Connie Irons who has just returned from
the mainland and is actively pursuing all avenues as she would like to
remain part of a club management. A couple of other qualified people
are very interested in running a facility but don’t have any financial
backing. Each scenario means it might have to be up to the community
to get involved in a variety of different ways and all these ideas are
being explored.

In addition, measures are currently being taken to secure the existing
equipment after the club closes so that any other entity coming
forward with a business plan that benefits the community could have
access to it. In order to do this, we are considering forming a
limited liability corporation (LLC) so that we can collect funds to
help with the moving, storage and relocation of this equipment. This
would then allow us to raise funds and secure donations that could be
put towards the formation of another fitness facility.

Fortunately, many of the instructors have made arrangements to
continue their own classes at various locations until a longer term
solution can be found.

Petrina, Renaella (Aerobics) & Bea (Pilates) have all made
arrangements with Hanalei Bay Resort to use their new facility under
the restaurant.
Esther (Aerobics) & Nutan (Yoga) are offering classes at their homes
Susan is hoping to work with both the community center and Princeville
Yoga studio for her early morning easy yoga classes.

Needless to say, there are lots of details to work out, but once other
instructors come forward with interim plans, we will post those to the
group site too.

Long Term
Many ambitious and wonderful ideas have percolated throughout the
meetings for a long term scenario. Even though the demographics of
our community don’t necessarily support a typical fitness club
profile, we believe the strong need, desire and tenacity of our
residents and long time visitors will produce a facility that we can
be proud of. Donation of suitable land is probably the most needed
aspect as well as qualified entities to build & run the facility.
There have been lots of ideas for possible sites but it will take
community input and involvement to get something off the ground. So
stay tuned!!!

We hope you will continue to, or perhaps start, checking in to the
Google group site regularly so we can share ideas and keep you posted
on any new developments as I may not be able to continue with emails.
It’s very easy and if you join the group, it will give us an idea of
those committed enough to take the time to get involved! Here’s the
link once more.... http://groups.google.com/group/northshore-fitness-kauai
. Just click on the link and follow the easy instructions to view
postings, and add your own comments.

Much aloha from the whole committee

Sincerely,
Mary Paterson
Communications Committee Chair