South Tahoe CrossFit overcomes issues with city

By Kathryn Reed

Having a cashed check in hand for a business license in the city of South Lake Tahoe does not mean a business will get the license.

Owners of CrossFit gym learned that the hard way.

The gym opened last summer on Shop Street. They filled out the paperwork, paid the city its fees. About two months later a letter arrives from the Finance Department saying a gymnasium is a non-conforming use in the industrial area.

CrossFit does not have traditional weight machines. Photos/Provided

Back to the city offices went the owners.

“They came to the front counter and we showed them the Industrial Area Community Plan. We showed them other areas where they could go,” explained Hilary Hodges, planning manager for South Lake Tahoe.

The owners — Tim Anderson, Matt Johnson, Tom Modenhauer and Weldon Wulstein — were in the process of appealing the planning staff’s denial of a business license just as the business was growing.

In December, South Tahoe CrossFit moved to Dunlap Street at the corner of James Street — where city code allows it to be. Anderson says the current location is about five times as big as the old site.

A city Finance Department employee said the business license application for CrossFit is under review.

“We are tax paying and law abiding,” Anderson said. “You would think economic success should be applauded. We are doing something that is good for people.”

It is the city’s policy to cash checks before the Planning Department has reviewed the paperwork. That is where the confusion is. Business owners have a receipt for money paid, are not told by the city not to operate, and have most likely signed a lease. A physical address for the business is necessary for the city to issue the license.

“Usually if people are on top of it they will come in and ask (about zoning and other issues) before they sign a lease and open a business,” Hodges said.

Anderson et al decided to open South Tahoe CrossFit because they believe in the philosophy of the workout.

Push-ups are routine at South Tahoe CrossFit.

“Instead of a big gym crammed full of equipment, we don’t have machines except for one rower,” Anderson explained. “The rest is bar bells, kettle bells, a big pull up bar. We do things with rings. Our workout is inherently different.”

People workout in small groups with a trainer, often doing the “workout of the day.” Different ability levels may workout together, but one person may be doing box jumps 12-inches high while another is at 30 inches.

“It is intense. That’s why you can get done in 20 minutes,” Anderson said. “We’re all about working across multiple joints and muscle groups. I defy anyone to say your heart rate isn’t up.”

For more information about South Tahoe CrossFit, click here or call (530) 541.2341.

CrossFit is based in Washington, with gyms in Round Hill and Tahoe Vista, too.