Life Time putting finishing touches on former Arden Hills club. Here’s when it opens

A luxurious fitness club is finally set to open in Arden Arcade a year after purchasing a 70-year-old family-run, private swim and tennis club long consider a Sacramento-area crown jewel.

Life Time, a national lifestyle brand and fitness club, is adding a new location in the capital region following the makeover of the former Arden Hills Athletic and Social Club site at 1220 Arden Hills Lane, a company news release said.

The Minnesota-based company announced that Life Time Arden would open its first phase by late June and fully complete its facilities by year’s end. It will be Life Time’s third location in the Sacramento region, joining facilities in Roseville and Folsom.

Life Time operates 170 clubs across the United States and Canada.

The 78,000-square-foot, two-story facility will include state-of-the-art fitness and wellness spaces, including a broad exercise floor, cardio and strength equipment, and a recovery area featuring cryotherapy, HydroMassage and compression treatments.

The Arden site will also offer 10 outdoor pickleball courts, nine tennis courts and a full aquatics complex and an outdoor beach club slated to open by late summer.

“We’re honored to bring the Life Time athletic country club experience to life at this storied property and carry forward a tradition of healthy living that started here more than 70 years ago,” Life Time Arden club leader Mila Litvinova said in a news release. “From family-friendly amenities to best-in-class racquet sports programming, our destination is designed to be the ultimate healthy way of life experience for everyone looking to prioritize their health and happiness.”

The club will also feature golf simulators, indoor and outdoor bars, a yoga studio, group training rooms and spa-quality locker rooms with saunas and steam rooms.

Beyond the courts once graced by tennis pros such as Jenson Brooksby, who battled current No. 1 men’s tennis player Carlos Alcaraz at the U.S. Open in 2022, the club will include outdoor pools, including 25-yard and 50-meter lap pools for Olympic training and a whirlpool.

Its kids academy will serve children from 3 months to 11 years old, with programming in music, sports and youth fitness classes expected to launch in winter.

Founded in 1954, Arden Hills gained international attention under swim coach Sherm Chavoor, producing Olympians such as Mark Spitz, Debbie Meyer and Sue Pedersen. Swimmers trained at the site won 22 Olympic gold medals.

The club had embarked on major expansions in the 1990s and weathered generational transitions. But COVID-19 shuttered many of its operations for more than a year and stalled weddings, events, and core business offerings. The Favero family, longtime owners of the club just off Fair Oaks Boulevard near Jesuit High School, sold the property to Life Time in October.

Club hours will be 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends. Membership is currently limited, and those interested can join the waitlist at lifetime.life/arden.