Northwest Side Planet Fitness Gets Approved

A former Home Depot garden center is poised to be demolished and replaced by a Planet Fitness gym.

The new gym would be adjacent to what is now a Pick ‘n Save grocery store at 7401 W. Good Hope Rd.

The gym chain, with more than 2,250 locations, markets itself as a low-cost “Judgement Free Zone” that caters to casual users. Membership starts at $10 per month.

The City Plan Commission unanimously endorsed the proposal on Monday afternoon.

The 20,000-square-foot facility requires a zoning change because it is being developed within a special 2004 zoning district that was created to enable the Home Depot store’s construction. But the Home Depot closed in 2008 and was shortly thereafter replaced by the Pick ‘n Save.

“This is a prime commercial node,” said Department of City Development planner Kristin Connelly in presenting the proposal to the commission. It is located near the intersection of N. 76th St. and W. Good Hope Rd.

An affiliate of Black Duck Partners (BDP), a Planet Fitness franchisee, bought the 0.89-acre garden center property in 2021 for $1.1 million. Boulder Venture, which bought the larger site after Home Depot closed, has parceled out other portions in recent years for outlot buildings. Urban Milwaukee first reported that a Planet Fitness could be coming to the site in November 2021.

The gym would be constructed in a one-story, new building with a facade that includes both brick and metal paneling.

“The architect has been responsive to increasing the amount of brick on the building and really increasing the amount of glazing in the areas where it is appropriate given the inside uses,” said Connelly.

The building is being designed by Appleton-based RMA Architects. Firm vice president and architect Timothy Maertz presented the plan to the commission, detailing how it would include 14 on-site parking spaces as well an agreement for patrons to use the adjacent Pick ‘n Save lot.

“A workout facility in this area is much needed. I am glad someone is making a commitment to this neighborhood,” said commissioner Ranell Washington.

BDP, according to its LinkedIn page, owns and operates more than 70 franchised Planet Fitness gyms in Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, New York and Canada. It is headquartered in Kimberly, WI.

RMA, according to its website, has designed a number of Planet Fitness gyms.

In 2011, BDP principal Tim Lennon told reporter Sean Ryan that the Milwaukee market could handle six Planet Fitness locations. There are now eight in Milwaukee County and 17 in southeastern Wisconsin, but the nearest one to the new site is located in the Midtown Center retail center, approximately five miles away. A new Planet Fitness gym opened in St. Francis in 2021.

The full Common Council must still approve the zoning change.

Renderings and Site Plan

Related Legislation: File 211348