Expanding fitness chain Life Time chose the fast-growing San Diego suburb of Chula Vista for its latest complex, part of a larger push by the company based near Minneapolis to increase nationally as retail centers welcome gyms as gathering places.
In competing against several global rivals, the company has a development pipeline for what it describes as resort-style “athletic country clubs” in more California locations and is scouting expansion sites in regions such as Las Vegas, Phoenix, Denver, Chicago and New York.
“We use a blend of ground-up construction and adaptive reuse, depending on the market,” Meghan Akradi, vice president of real estate and market strategy at Life Time, told CoStar News in an email. “In markets where you can still find undeveloped land, building ground-up is great. We’ve also been able to open amazing destinations in densely developed markets like Boston, New York and Austin over the last couple years by repurposing retail or office space.”
Life Time is among a handful of fitness chains that have seen significant global expansion since the end of the pandemic — a roster that also includes rivals Crunch Fitness, Planet Fitness and Anytime Fitness. Gyms and restaurants are welcome staples at retail centers, as landlords seek out non-shopping tenants to replace traditional store chains that continue to reduce their location counts with the escalation of online purchasing.
Those tenants have increasingly been joined by experience-focused businesses that seek to draw in visitors with pickleball courts, bowling lanes, auto-racing simulators and high-tech golfing ranges, often combined with on-site dining.
“The retail tenant mix continues to incorporate a higher proportion of services and experiences,” brokerage JLL said in a U.S. retail report. “These categories now comprise over half of all leasing activity over the last 12 months. With the ease of purchasing physical goods online, landlords will increasingly turn to services to pull consumers into stores and centers.”
Targeting a fast-growing market
Spanning more than 135,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor amenities, the two-level, upscale Life Time opened this month in eastern Chula Vista in a complex that it built and owns at 1650 Main St. W. Located about 10 miles south of downtown San Diego, Chula Vista has long been among the fastest-growing cities in the San Diego region and California.
The master-planned, mixed-use Cota Vera development where Life Time opened in Chula Vista’s Otay Ranch neighborhood continues to see a slew of residential and retail projects, drawing residents and businesses seeking property prices that are generally more affordable than those in central San Diego.
The new Life Time is also about a half-hour drive from the Gaylord Pacific Resort & Convention Center that opened last year in western Chula Vista. The 1,600-room hospitality property, the largest U.S. hotel to debut in 2025, has already sparked several other nearby residential, hotel and recreational projects seeking to capitalize on the expected uptick in business traffic.
“The Otay Ranch area is the fastest-growing part of San Diego County, with extensive housing and commercial development attracting a population looking to build community,” Akradi said. “Life Time appeals to a wide range of ages and interests, so it’s an ideal place for neighbors to socialize and connect while also pursuing their wellness goals.”
Life Time landed on Fortune magazine’s 2025 list of the nation’s 100 fastest-growing companies, with a focus on that athletic country club model emphasizing high-end amenities and expansion in urban areas. The Chanhassen, Minnesota-based company has 185 company-owned clubs operating in the United States and Canada and has recently signed several big leases as part of long-term expansion plans.
In California, Akradi said Life Time has another club under construction that is similar to the Chula Vista location and set to open this summer in the Orange County city of Brea. Two more projects are moving forward this year in Los Angeles and San Jose.
“Across the country, we’re expanding our existing networks in Phoenix, Denver, Las Vegas, New York City and Chicago, among others,” Akradi said, adding the company is also eyeing potential locations for its first clubs in Boise, Idaho, along with Orlando and Sarasota in Florida.
CoStar data and company filings show several Life Time locations are in the works after large lease signings. During 2025, those included a nearly 52,000-square-foot lease on New York City’s Fifth Avenue and an 80,000-square-foot lease in Brooklyn, New York. Life Time also purchased two suburban Chicago complexes from Five Seasons Sports Club for a planned conversion to its own brand.
Catering to steady housing growth
Net-lease real estate investment trust W.P. Carey last month bought a portfolio of 10 Life Time club locations in Atlanta, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and other metropolitan regions for $322 million from TPG Angelo Gordon, according to the REIT. Life Time sold most of the properties to TPG in 2015 as part of a sale-leaseback deal and continues to occupy them.
U.S. consumers are expected to spend about $60 billion to support their exercise and fitness goals in 2026, according to a December nationwide survey by the Health & Fitness Association. A trade group statement noted 86% of 2,000 respondents said access to fitness facilities — such as gyms, studios and health clubs — “will be important to achieving their goals,” including 61% who consider it “very important.”
Built on previously undeveloped land, the new Chula Vista Life Time employs nearly 200 and features a 26,000-square-foot workout floor and seven pickleball courts, including three climate-controlled indoor courts. Indoor facilities totaling more than 84,000 square feet include dedicated studios for GTX, Pilates, yoga and other fitness training, with facilities for large group fitness classes.
The property also has a resort-style outdoor pool deck with waterslides, an outdoor bar and dining area, and a large social lounge. The club’s arrival is part of larger efforts by the city of Chula Vista and Cota Vera developer HomeFed Corp. to bring long-sought social gathering elements to an area that has seen rapid housing development for the past decade.
Chula Vista since 2020 has issued building permits for nearly 6,500 new housing units, leading San Diego County for housing production per capita as of late 2025, according to city data. California’s 14th most populous city, Chula Vista’s fastest growth has occurred on its eastern side in neighborhoods like Otay Ranch.
“Cities aren’t built simply by adding homes; they’re built by creating environments where families can live healthier, more connected lives,” Parham Javahri, Life Time’s executive vice president and chief of property development, said in a statement regarding the Chula Vista opening.