Indoor Climbing Facility to Open in Richmond

Biz Buzz

North Carolina-based Triangle Rock Club is bringing its indoor rock climbing venture to the Richmond area later this year.

The company, which has three locations in North Carolina, plans to open a climbing facility with a yoga studio and a fitness center in the former Richmond Athletic Club building at 4700 Thalbro St., near Staples Mill Road, in western Henrico County.

Triangle Rock Club is purchasing the building through its real estate holding company, which will lease it back to the business, said Joel Graybeal, managing partner for Triangle Rock Club, based in Morrisville, near Raleigh, N.C.

Graybeal said one of the attractions of the building is that it is already equipped and laid out with components that fit their needs.

"In the past year, they have completely redone all of the locker rooms. There's brand new showers, brand new lockers, brand new tile, and that comes with the building. There is a 2,400-square-foot fitness facility. It's mirrored and has all of the black, rubber matting already down. There's already an existing 800-square-foot yoga room," Graybeal said.

The project to convert the space for Triangle Rock Club will be tackled in two phases.

Phase one - refurbishing the existing 24,000-square-foot building and installing climbing walls - will be done by the end of the year. The cost, including to purchase the building, is estimated at about $2.8 million, Graybeal said.

Phase two is construction of a second building - 15,000 square feet with stand-alone climbing walls up to 45 feet high - at a cost of about $1.2 million to $1.4 million, Graybeal said. The facility will feature Walltopia brand climbing walls. There also will be a retail shop.

The first Triangle Rock Club opened in 2007, the second in September 2013 and the third in November 2014. The first and second locations have expanded since opening.

Graybeal left a career in banking in 2011 to work with the company's founding partners, former Marines Andrew Kratz and Luis Jauregui. He said they have not decided on membership rates for the club.

Bruce Perretz of Perretz & Young Architects in Hanover County is doing the architectural work for the climbing facility. M.L. Bell Construction of Hanover County is the general contractor. Financing is through SunTrust Bank.

The building was listed by Matt Hamilton of Colliers International. Triangle Rock Club was represented by Kevin Cox of Porter Realty and Mark C. Boykin of Bob Northern & Co. in the purchase, Graybeal said.

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