A Planet Fitness gym franchisee was evicted from its downtown San Francisco space after falling behind on over half a million dollars in rent, court records show, but it plans to reopen five blocks away in a few weeks
A San Francisco Superior Court judge ordered the gym’s eviction and lease termination on Aug. 7 at 417 Montgomery St., after landlord Entrex Holdings LP sued for unlawful detainer in April
Franchise owner Bob McLennan of FITPFSF Inc. said the almost 14,000-square-foot club opened the same week as COVID lockdowns in March 2020 and struggled financially. “COVID just destroyed the place … because we were shut down,” he testified in a June deposition
Advertisement
Court filings said the monthly base rent was almost $64,000. But both McLennan and Entrex representative Michelle Ziegler confirmed to the Chronicle that the landlord provided over $3 million in rent abatements during COVID and the lease was amended 41 times
“We wanted to see him succeed. That was our primary goal,” Ziegler told the Chronicle
The relationship later collapsed. Numerous gyms including 24 Hour Fitness and Crunch have closed multiple downtown locations since COVID, demonstrating that turbulence in the fitness industry and in the real estate sector continues despite downtown business momentum. Planet Fitness, which wasn’t named in the lawsuit, didn’t respond to requests for comment
In court filings, the landlord said McLennan paid only $8,120 in rent in August 2025, and Ziegler said McLennan stopped all payments after November 2025, including the water bill for showers. Yet, she said, the gym continued to operate until this month, shortly before the sheriff was set to lock out the gym this week
Advertisement
McLennan testified in June he had “zero” factual basis to dispute the half-million dollar in unpaid rent. When asked when he would vacate the building, he replied, “I don’t know.”
McLennan told the Chronicle that the landlord was painting him as a “villain” but “I did everything I could to make a deal. They wouldn’t budge.”
He is also benefiting from the COVID-fueled downtown exodus: His gym will reopen around Labor Day at 141 Kearny St., where Walgreens closed in 2022. McLennan said his rent is around one-third of the rent at 417 Montgomery St. for a slightly larger, over 15,000-square-foot space. “We had no choice other than to look around,” he said
Building permits show McLennan’s brother, Mike, filed in January to demolish Walgreens improvements to prepare the 141 Kearny St. space for the new gym, three months before McLennan was sued. The demolition cost was an estimated $70,000. A July permit estimated another $2 million in expenses for tenant improvements to build workout areas, locker rooms, showers, bathrooms and a reception space. The two brothers are sons of Jim McLennan, an influential Bay Area drag-racing promoter who founded Champion Speed Shop.
Advertisement
The $503,556 judgment is equivalent to around eight months of unpaid rent from August 2025 through the end of March 2026, which is when Ziegler said the 2019 lease expired after a one-year extension. Ziegler said the landlord is seeking additional damages for attorney fees
McLennan’s JMCL Properties LLC was also sued in 2020 by his prior landlord, Litke Properties, at nearby 350 Sansome St. over alleged unpaid rent totaling over $600,000, according to court records. Planet Fitness was located at that building before moving to Montgomery Street. The case was settled for an undisclosed amount and dismissed in November 2023
McLennan said the Sansome lawsuit was based on the landlord seeking $600,000 for equipment left at the gym by a prior tenant, Crunch Fitness. “We went to mediation and settled for a few pennies,” he said. Litke Properties couldn’t immediately be reached for comment
McLennan said he would send Entrex financial statements on the gym every month. “We weren’t bleeding but we absolutely were just barely breaking even at the reduced rent,” he said
Advertisement
Ziegler said the parties met and couldn’t reach an agreement, and McLennan “wouldn’t leave” after the March lease expiration, prompting the eviction lawsuit. She said McLennan left behind debris during the moveout and damaged the property. “We’re disappointed with how he returned the space,” she said
McLennan testified in June that the relationship went “sideways” due to a payment dispute over fixing a cooling tower and HVAC equipment. “I agreed to repair the units, and the reality is we couldn’t afford it,” McLennan testified, estimating the costs at hundreds of thousands of dollars
In court filings, the landlord’s attorney rejected that argument and said the lease stated the tenant was responsible for paying for repairs and also couldn’t withhold rent because of the dispute
Judge Charles Haines sided with the landlord
Advertisement
The landlord said the gym’s continued presence threatened a planned sale of the property, and Ziegler said that it also dissuaded prospective tenants from moving in
McLennan also operates a Planet Fitness franchise in Daly City, a space he has leased since 1979 with the same landlord. A different franchisee from Maryland opened a Planet Fitness at 1533 Sloat Blvd. in January
Ziegler and McLennan both confirmed that he has yet to pay the $503,000 judgement. McLennan affirmed that he will pay his debts
There’s more to San Francisco with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢
This article originally published at Exclusive: Downtown Planet Fitness evicted after $503,000 in unpaid rent, will reopen blocks away
