Landlord Sues Crux Climbing for Climbing Wall Ownership

A climbing gym in Austin, Texas, Crux Climbing, should be soaring to new heights after recently opening a brand new facility and expanding its business. Instead, it’s down in the weeds of lawsuits and legal filings.

One of Crux Climbing’s locations at 121 Pickle Road Austin, Texas, is a rented space. Back in 2023, Crux informed the building’s landlord that it would not be continuing to rent the space past 2024. The legal trouble came when the landlord, 3432 Pickle LLC, claimed that the climbing walls inside the gym belonged to the building and not Crux.

“We are disputing all allegations, and we have found counsel to help us dispute,” said Grace Nicholas, chief operating officer of Crux. According to My San Antonio, “Crux is arguing that the climbing walls are trade fixtures, which means that the gym would be able to remove them and take them without any landlord interference.”

Trade fixtures can become a grey area in lease contracts but some prime examples include, “the sign of the business that is renting out front or like specific shelving." 

According to the filed lawsuit, the contract reads, “Any alterations, improvements, fixtures or additions to the Property or leased premises installed by either party . . . will become Landlord’s property and must be surrendered at the time this lease ends.” 

Based on those lines in the contract, 3432 Pickle LLC is suing Crux for the walls and an additional $250,000. The landlord’s attachment to the fixtures may be driven by the building’s newest slated tenant, The Austin Bouldering Project. The Austin Bouldering Project is another popular climbing franchise in the city, and it told KXAN News, “[it] viewed the space as an opportunity to further support the climbing hobby in Austin.”

Meanwhile, Crux took to social media claiming that, “Austin Bouldering Project had negotiated a lease with the landlord, without Crux’s knowledge, to take over their Pickle Road location.”

Crux will shut down operations at the Pickle Road facility by Dec. 31, 2024. The new location on Slaughter Lane will open in 2025, with or without the existing climbing walls.