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Amber Jesmer has always been an avid fitness buff – staying active by running and lifting weights.

When she moved to the Chisago City area, she quickly found Anytime Fitness in Forest Lake as her new fitness home. She just always wished there was a workout center a little closer to her home, with hours that would fit with her schedule.

Actually, she thought with her degrees in business and education and background in teaching, owning her own fitness franchise would be the perfect fit. While browsing the Internet for Anytime Fitness locations, she found that one was planned for Chisago City already.

She called up owner Brad Jackomino, who also owns the Forest Lake franchise and asked him for a job. “He agreed to interview me and here I am,” Jesmer said.

She is now the new manager of the Anytime Fitness in Chisago City. The facility is currently under construction on Hwy. 8 next to ERA Muske. Jesmer said it is scheduled to open later this month or early December.

Jackomino, along with co-owner O.J. Rienhart, will offer a 3,000 square foot facility complete with a cardio area, free weights, curcuit training and a flexibility area.

Jesmer said the flexibility area allows members space to stretch properly before beginning their workouts. It will include a Precor stretch trainer machine that assists with proper stretching.

One of the biggest advantages of Anytime Fitness are the hours – it’s open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Members use their membership cards, swiping it through a security switchplate at a locked entrance to the facility.

Another advantage is that members of the Chisago City facility can workout at all 51 Anytime Fitness locations in Minnesota as well as the 230 nationwide sites.

Staff will be on hand six days a week to assist with questions or concerns. Staff hours will be 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. There will be no staff on holidays or Sundays.

At any time, members can choose to wear emergency necklaces, which are equipped with a panic button that will notify authorities in case of an emergency at the facility.

The presale membership campaign has been running for about four weeks and Jesmer said it’s going well. “We have over 60 members so far,” she said. “The goal was five to 10 a week and we’ve exceeded that.”

Discounted memberships are offered during the presale. Members can save up to $5 on their monthly dues by joining before the facility opens. Jemser said the regular membership price will most likely be around $38.

As part of their membership, all members receive one training session with a personal trainer onsite. After that, training sessions will run $99 for three sessions.

There are currently two staff members – Amber and Amber Reinhart, O.J.’s wife. Jesmer said they will most likely hire another part-time staff person at some point.

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