Iron Energy Gym in West Kelowna has kept its doors open despite a public health order.

Image Credit: FACEBOOK/Iron Energy Gym

The owners of a West Kelowna gym continue to battle health and city officials while keeping the doors to facility open to their customers in defiance of a public health order.

Iron Energy Gym has been in the media, and social media, spotlight the six owners' stance against public health orders which dictate that gyms must shut their doors. One of those owners says there are more gyms ready to join the fray.

"There's probably 250 gyms ready to take a stand," Brian Mark, Iron Energy Gym co-owner said, but wouldn't elaborate. 

He is not involved in organizing those efforts but instead is focused on his local community and his gym.

"There are city councillors that agree with me but are afraid to speak up," he said. "I respect there's a hierarchy in play, but the council in our city makes the decisions for the well being of our city."

Mark has been spearheading the efforts of his gym to keep welcoming its members inside for workouts, which were made in spite of a provincial public health order on Dec. 21, that declared fitness facilities must close as the Omicron variant of COVID-19 sweeps across the province.

He became more vocal about his stance after the City of West Kelowna declined to renew the gym's business license earlier this week. Yesterday, RCMP issued a $2,300 fine for its health order violations, which was given on behalf of Interior Health.

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Iron Energy Gym members have been encouraged by its owners to reach out to West Kelowna city council, Interior Health and, now, provincial government leadership in a plea to make gyms an essential service.

Mark believes the mental health of his members is of crucial importance, and if other businesses, like restaurants and pubs, can remain open, then gyms should not be treated differently.

"I haven't taken a dime out of that gym since I've owned it. Everything we've done is dumping money into it," Mark said when asked whether his vocal stance against the health orders was out of business interest, rather than the mental health of gym goers.

"I've had members come up to me and say they are staying sober just because of the gym," he said.

In Kamloops, two gyms were also handed $2,300 fines yesterday.

An Interior Health enforcement officer was accompanied by Kamloops RCMP and a Community Service Officer to both No Limits Fitness and Anytime Fitness where they were each given the fine yesterday.

Mounties also attended those businesses on Jan. 5 with Interior Health enforcement officers because they were violating public health orders that declared gyms must be closed, according to Kamloops RCMP.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry has said gyms can be an "amplifier" for COVID-19 transmission.

"The reality is, and we've seen this repeatedly, these are indoor activities with adults in a group even wearing a mask where the risk is higher. It just is. When we have a lot of transmission in the community, gyms become amplifiers," she said.

As the City of West Kelowna began getting calls, emails and social media attention from gym goers voicing their dismay for its refusal to issue a business license to Iron Energy Gym, the city responded with a plea that the public do so in a respectful way.

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“The City is part of a connected and supportive community; and, our social media channels are one way that we serve our community and encourage meaningful dialogue. We paused input overnight in the hopes that it would allow the conversation to return to a respectful tone," the City of West Kelowna said in a written statement. “A local gym is in defiance of a provincial Public Health Order, related to COVID-19 guidelines and therefore, we continue to ask people to direct inquires or comments on this matter to Interior Health or the Province of B.C.”

The city added the business license will be reviewed once Iron Energy Gym is in compliance with public health orders, or when the order is removed by provincial health authorities.

Mark insists that Iron Energy Gym has implemented all public health measures required of it during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the early days of the pandemic, he did not own the gym, calling the venture a "passion project." Prior to taking part ownership in the gym he worked in marketing, which he still does.

READ MORE: B.C. businesses have a week to get their COVID safety plans in place

While admitting that he is double vaccinated against COVID-19, he believes every Canadian should have a choice in that. Most importantly for Mark, however, is the right to run his business.

"I'm just a gym owner. Just a regular dude from West Kelowna with a wife and daughter," he said. "The only fight I'm picking is the right to operate my business."

Mark would not say more about the more than 200 gyms that are willing to "take a stand," but that they are watching what is unfolding with Iron Energy Gym and some of the less vocal gyms, like No Limits Fitness and Anytime Fitness in Kamloops.

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