Professional bodybuilder opens high-end training gym in north St. Pete
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A new gym is coming to St. Petersburg’s Gateway area this summer. Champs Elysium Gym is a semi-private facility created by professional bodybuilder Derek Lunsford and his wife, Jhelsin. It will open at 3051 Tech Drive in a 15,000-square-foot industrial space.
The gym will cater to elite athletes, bodybuilders, and fitness enthusiasts. Membership will be limited to maintain a focused training environment. “We aren’t trying to compete with other gyms,” said Lunsford. “Each one offers something different. Ours will be capped so it never feels overcrowded.”
The name Champs Elysium comes from Greek mythology. It refers to a paradise reserved for heroes and the righteous.
Inside, the gym will feature over 150 pieces of strength and cardio equipment. Most machines are from Newtech, a South Korea-based company that designs gear specifically for bodybuilders. The brand is also a title sponsor of the Olympia World Championship.
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After months of renovating a former convenience store and fine-tuning recipes, the owners of Kitty’s House of Pizza are getting ready to welcome their first customers next month in St. Pete’s Central Oak Park neighborhood.
The pizzeria at 4059 5th Avenue North will serve scratch-made pies that owners Steve Garrahan and Kurt Drake hope will give nearby residents something to crave.
Garrahan and Drake, the founders of Bright Ice Scoop Shop, first announced the concept in December 2025. Since then, they have been developing a small menu built around familiar flavors with a few unexpected ingredients.
“We want the pizzas to be distinct, but we don’t want them to be weird for the sake of being weird,” Garrahan said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising.
One of the owners’ favorites is the Golden Hour, which contains a creamy pepperoncini pepper white base with mozzarella, housemade sausage, red onions, pepperoncini rings, and roasted red peppers.