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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A 16-story apartment tower has been proposed across from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg campus, replacing a larger project approved for the same property last year.
The proposed development would rise at 446 4th Street South, at the northeast corner of 5th Avenue South and 4th Street South.
The 0.7-acre property is currently home to a 105-year-old commercial building previously occupied by Fresenius Kidney Care American Dialysis Center and an adjacent surface parking lot.
The project, which would be developed by Charleston, South Carolina-based The Beach Company, will contain 165 apartments, approximately 3,200 square feet of ground-floor retail space, a 176-space parking garage, and 178 bicycle spaces.
It’s a significant change from the development St. Petersburg City Council approved for the site in February 2025.