Weakened finances

Fitness giant permanently closes 11 Dallas-Fort Worth gyms amid bankruptcy

24 Hour Fitness says its in bad shape due to the novel coronavirus.

Still reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic, the 24 Hour Fitness chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection June 15 and has permanently closed more than 130 locations in the U.S., including 11 throughout Dallas-Fort Worth.

The gyms that have shut down permanently are:

5901 Golden Triangle, Fort Worth
6601 N.E. Loop 820, North Richland Hills
2100 Plaza Pkwy., Bedford
2407 W. Airport Frwy., Irving
5706 E. Mockingbird Ln., Dallas
7622 Campbell Rd., Dallas
3050 N. Josey Ln., Carrollton
4600 W. Park Blvd., Plano
3865 Preston Rd., Frisco
213 N. Hwy. 67, Cedar Hill
724 W. Main St., Lewisville

Twenty remaining gyms in the area are reopening this month and next month. (Find those here.) Members may work out at any reopened location throughout 2020.

“If it were not for COVID-19 and its devastating effects, we would not be filing for Chapter 11. With that said, we intend to use the process to strengthen the future of 24 Hour Fitness for our team and club members, as well as our stakeholders,” Tony Ueber, CEO of San Ramon, California-based 24 Hour Fitness, says in a release.

In a letter to customers, Ueber says the gyms that have been shut down permanently were either outdated or were close to other 24 Hour Fitness locations. The company still operates about 300 gyms in the U.S.

In May, 24 Hour Fitness rival Gold’s Gym International, based in Dallas, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. As a result of its financial troubles, Gold’s shuttered three of its Dallas-area locations in May.

In addition to the 11 DFW closures, 24 Hour Fitness has permanently closed three gyms in the Austin area and 12 locations in the Houston area.

closings fitness

NEW CRUSH

Lauded Texas winemaker uplifts Hill Country town with new vineyard and tasting room

Photo by David Capote

Uplift Vineyard devotes 55 acres to growing grapes.

One of Texas’ most acclaimed winemakers is stomping on new grounds. William Chris Wine Company is opening of a new vineyard and tasting room on a gorgeous 78-acre property in Burnet, about 170 miles (or just over two-and-a-half hours) southwest of Fort Worth.

William Chris founders Chris Brundrett and Andrew Sides purchased the property, formerly named Hoover Valley, in 2021 from a private owner. The rebranded Uplift Vineyard hired the vineyard team and rehabbed the existing structures to offer elevated wine-tasting experiences and host future private events.

Uplift will be William Chris’ first estate wine brand. For those not up on wine-speak, the offerings will use grapes exclusively grown in the vineyard instead of those harvested by outside growers. Winemaker Claire Richardson will head the program, featuring a surfeit of single-varietal wines and proprietary blends.

Fall releases will zero in on hefty sippers like a single variety Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Malbec, as well as a Bordeaux blend. Springtime will lighten up with Italian grapes such as Montepulciano, Aglianico, and Sangiovese.

Eventually, Uplift Vineyard will expand its wine offerings to a medium-body Rhône blend featuring Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre and explore white blends and rosés.

“Every bottle of Uplift wine will come from only the best grapes harvested from this spectacular site, situated in the Llano Uplift geological region,” says CEO Bundrett via a release. “We’re looking forward to bringing awareness to this unique location within the Texas Hill Country AVA because the fruit that’s being grown here is just outstanding.”

Guests can enjoy the vintages at the tasting room or via a limited-capacity wine club, the Uplift Viticultural Society. Uplift is in the final stages of filling the first 300 of 1,000 total spots for the ultra-exclusive Founders Club.

Looking forward, Uplift will host onsite cooking demonstrations and full-day experiences that take advantage of the bucolic setting. For now, the tasting room is open for reservations only, Thursdays through Sundays, 11 am-6 pm.

Last fall, William Chris Vineyards came in at No. 56 on the World’s Best Vineyards' list of top wine destinations for 2022. It was the only Texas vineyard on the list and one of only seven wineries from the U.S.

texas wine hill county wine