Northbrook Life Time Fitness Center Opens

NORTHBROOK, IL — Life Time Athletic Northbrook opens its doors to members on Wednesday. The location is the company's ninth location in the Chicago market, and its first new club in the area in the decade, the company announced. The 86,000-square-foot facility located at 1100 Skokie Blvd, just south of the Dundee Road exit from I-94 combines a fitness, family recreation, spa and a "country club-style" resort.

The $42 million construction project is bringing 200 new jobs into the area, according to the company. It aims to provide an "unparalleled, resort-style, health and fitness destination" to achieve the "total health objectives, athletic aspirations and fitness goals" of its members. This includes a restaurant, full service salon and spa, indoor aquatic centers and a dedicated kids area, among other things.

"We opened our first Life Time in Chicago more than 18 years ago in Schaumburg and continue to encompass a whole healthy lifestyle for all ages, in addition to a great workout," said Tim Kersten, the company's senior general manager. "We're excited to serve the Northbrook community and our members with a broad array of health, wellness, nutrition, relaxation and entertainment services and programs."

Life Time is planning four more locations, including Oakbrook, Lake Zurich and at One Chicago Square in Chicago's River North neighborhood. Existing area locations include Old Orchard in Skokie, Algonquin, Bloomingdale, Burr Ridge, Orland Park, Romeoville, Schaumburg, Vernon Hills and Warrenville. The company has also announced plans for more than $100 million in improvements to its current clubs during 2019. Those will include renovations, expansions, new equipment and other enhancements.

In September 2015, the Northbrook Plan Commission voted 4-3 to recommend that trustees vote against the project, which originally included a 43,000-square-foot Children's Learning Adventure complex. One commission member described it as a "campus of exclusion." The development eventually won approval by a 4-3 vote in March 2016, with Village President Sandy Frum and trustees Jim Karagianis and Bob Israel voting against, according to a December 2016 Pioneer Press report.

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