Waltham Boston Sports Club Closes Abruptly

WALTHAM, MA — When Boston Sports Clubs shut the doors on a dozen of its gyms this fall amid financial trouble for the chain, it sent members from the now closed Watertown and West Newton locations to its Waltham gym on Winter Street.

But on Nov. 30, without warning that gym closed, too.

That evening they sent a message to some club members:

As you know the pandemic has caused us, Boston Sports Clubs, to modify the number of clubs in the marketplace. Your home club, Waltham, is unfortunately part of the closure and the last available workout is on 11/30/20.

But other members said they didn't hear about the closure until they showed up to work out.

The Boston Sports Clubs website says the location is closed, but the automated answering menu still offers hours and directs phone calls to various departments. It does not indicate a closure. The website sends would-be gym goers to three other gyms, including Salisbury, Peabody and Lynnfield. The gym website for Lynnfield indicates it is closed temporarily.

The owner of Boston Sports Clubs filed for bankruptcy in September in a plan that would allow the popular gym chain to keep operating as it works out its debts following months of closures. Town Sports International LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware, meaning the company aims to keep the business alive while paying off its creditors.

"The duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and the extent of its impact on our business cannot be reasonably estimated at this time," Town Sports said in a quarterly earnings statement in September. "We anticipate that the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to negatively impact our operating results in future periods."

Town Sports was sued by BSC members in June over the company's continued collection of monthly dues during the shutdown. Attorney General Maura Healey said the company "hasn't been fair to its members about their right to cancel their membership and continued to charge members who tried to cancel. Make no mistake—this is illegal."

The company ultimately froze memberships and promised customers additional days of access equal to the number of days paid for while its clubs were closed.

- Patch reporter Alex Newman contributed to this report.