LI Gym Owner Prepares For Reopening After 5 Months

LONG ISLAND, NY — As Monday marks the first day gyms can reopen in New York, Long Island fitness enthusiasts are eager to lose that "quarantine 15." But how will gyms look now during the pandemic?

Bill Riccio, owner of RiccioFit Strength & Movement Studio on 99-105 W. Hoffman Avenue in Lindenhurst, is not opening until September 7, but already has a plan for the new protocols.

"Our already stringent cleaning protocol will be significantly improved, we will be following all CDC guidelines and we sought advice from a company that specializes in disinfection of schools and various businesses," he told Patch.

According to Riccio, who owns the business with Kristie Riccio, once it reopens the fitness center will require social distancing and masks for members during workouts, which will be modified to accommodate these guidelines. He also plans to increase the downtime between sessions to allow a full cleaning before every session. Members will not be allowed to share equipment during a workout and all equipment will be disinfected after every use.

He wants to community to know he is taking the situation "very seriously."

"Our studio was one of the cleanest and safest before the pandemic and we intend to keep it that way," he said. "Before the pandemic we operated by appointment only and we will continue that, our groups are small and we are very family focused, we care about our members like family and we care about their health and well being the same way."

While Riccio said he is grateful to finally reopen his business after five months, he is still "very frustrated" that it took this long.

"We believe small business in general but in particular the fitness industry whose mission is to help people be healthy have been treated very unfairly by the governor," he said. "Behind every small business is a family trying to put food on the table and that was forgotten."

Riccio hopes the community will emphasize their support for small businesses, stating that while larger corporations "will survive the pandemic," many small mom-and-pop stores still rely on help from the community.

"Small local gyms typically do not operate on big margins we are not millionaires with fancy cars, we are typically families just trying to earn a living doing what we love, helping people," he said. "Many local gyms treat their members like family, they aren’t just numbers to us. We know all our clients personally and we care for them deeply."

All photos courtesy of Bill Riccio