Lee Fehrenbacher//September 26, 2012//
A California company called Planet Granite has announced its plans to renovate a building at 1404 N.W. 14th Avenue into a 32,000-square-foot, three-story rock climbing facility. Plans include 60-foot-high climbing walls, bouldering walls, a 40-foot bouldering ramp that runs from the first to the second story, two yoga studios and a fitness center.
Stephanie Ko Pound, marketing and regional manager for the company, said the idea is to create a varied training facility under one roof.
鈥淲e really want to work with a customer who wants to do multiple things,鈥 she said. 鈥淪o yes, we are predominantly a climbing gym, but a lot of our climbers begin with one sport and naturally introduce themselves to other sports.鈥
Planet Granite鈥檚 own evolution began in 1994 when it opened a gym in Santa Clara, Calif. Eight years later, it opened another facility in Belmont (located between San Francisco and San Jose), followed by another one in Sunnyvale to replace the Santa Clara facility, and then one in San Francisco.
Dan Schalit, who is handling the real estate negotiations for the company, said Portland鈥檚 outdoorsy population has been on the company鈥檚 radar for a while.
鈥淭here are some good operators there and certainly some nice bouldering gyms, but with our facilities we鈥檙e hoping to capitalize on the fact that there is a strong climbing community and we鈥檙e located in a part of town that hopefully we can coexist with the other climbing gyms and just help the community grow,鈥 he said.
Other gyms in Portland include the Portland Rock Gym at 21 N.E. 12th Ave. and the Circuit Bouldering Gyms at 410 N.E. 17th Ave. and at 6050 S.W. Macadam Ave.
Schalit said Planet Granite currently has a contract to purchase the property. A pre-application conference with the Bureau of Development Services was scheduled for today at 3 p.m. The company hopes to open the facility in 2014.
The company also has an aggressive giving program, and Ko Pound said it donates $1 for every member it signs up to local community organizations. Plans for the Pearl facility are still in the early stages of design, but Ko Pound said it would cater to a wide range of skill levels.
鈥淓verything from amazing juggy climbs to really, really tough, dynamic route climbs,鈥 she said.