WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. – A business coming soon to Lehigh County wants to help community members reach new heights, in more ways than one.
A new location of The Gravity Vault Indoor Rock Gyms, a business aiming to provide a fun, welcoming environment where beginners and experienced climbers can learn, train and enjoy climbing together, will hold a soft opening on Friday, March 21, at the Whitehall Mall in Whitehall Township.
A new location of The Gravity Vault Indoor Rock Gyms is coming soon to Whitehall Township.
The new facility, at 1951 Whitehall Mall, will total roughly 25,000 square feet and will occupy a renovated space previously occupied by a PA Fitness gym, which closed in January 2022.
The PA Fitness gym rebranded from Gold’s Gym in 2020, and the former fitness facility opened about 16 years prior to that after workers overhauled the mall’s former Plaza Theatre and Leh’s department store, both of which closed in the 1990s.
"Tomorrow is the day you have all been waiting for!" a message posted Thursday on the business' Facebook page reads. "We will be opening our doors at 12pm for day passes, memberships, and tours of the space!"
A new location of The Gravity Vault Indoor Rock Gyms is coming soon to the Whitehall Mall in Whitehall Township.
After Friday, regular hours for the facility will be 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
The Whitehall indoor rock climbing gym will be the first Lehigh Valley location of Gravity Vault, which was established in 2005.
Founders Lucas Kovalcik and Tim Walsh debuted the first Gravity Vault location in Upper Saddle River, New Jersey and grew the programming options to include memberships, private climbing sessions, birthday parties, camps, competitive climbing teams, belay classes and more.
After four years of fine-tuning programming, The Gravity Vault opened its second location in Chatham, New Jersey.
A new location of The Gravity Vault Indoor Rock Gyms is coming soon to the Whitehall Mall in Whitehall Township. Pictured is a Gravity Vault location in Flemington, New Jersey.
In 2013, The Gravity Vault took the next step in expanding rock climbing opportunities in local communities through franchising, opening its first franchisee owned and operated facility in Middletown, New Jersey.
Today, more than a dozen Gravity Vault locations operate in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and California, and more are on the way.
In addition to the Lehigh Valley Gravity Vault, five other locations are coming soon, including facilities in Virginia and Texas.
In Pennsylvania, another location operates in Radnor, and another facility is coming soon in Philadelphia.
The Whitehall facility will be co-owner Jason Bogroff’s second Gravity Vault facility, supplementing a location that he opened in 2018 in Flemington, N.J., where he resides.
A new location of The Gravity Vault Indoor Rock Gyms is coming soon to the Whitehall Mall in Whitehall Township. Pictured is a Gravity Vault location in Flemington, New Jersey.
In Whitehall, he’s partnering with his friend, Mahen Shanmugham.
“We’re definitely excited,” Bogroff said.
“This is a facility that brings value to the community, helping people of all ages – young and old – both physically and mentally. In Flemington, I’ve had multiple parents tell me that climbing is what saved their kids. They told me that it not only improved their fitness, but it also improved their attitude and overall outlook on life. It’s so rewarding to hear those types of comments, and it’s a big reason behind wanting to open another facility.”
The Whitehall rock climbing gym will feature 15,000 square feet of climbing space, with 67 rope stations and 30-foot walls.
The facility will offer more than 50 leadable stations, with the longest continuous lead climb being 70 feet, along with a 5,000-square-foot bouldering area.
A new location of The Gravity Vault Indoor Rock Gyms is coming soon to Whitehall Township.
Other features will include a 24-foot-wide slab spray wall, 16-foot-wide kilter board and 10-foot-wide tension board – all adjustable.
The climbing walls will feature various designs and degrees of difficulty, with various arêtes, arches, key holes, chimneys, cracks, overhangs and more.
“We’ll have a team that’s creating new climbs every day, with different holds, features and levels of difficulty,” Bogroff said.
“So, the facility will remain fresh for everyone who visits. We’ll have a lot of different kinds of structures, including more complex, inverted walls. We’ll even have a structure designed like a giant rock cave, where more advanced climbers could climb upside down.”
A bouldering area, where individuals climb without the use of ropes or harnesses, will feature some “unique, challenging areas, with really aggressive angles,” Bogroff said.
A new location of The Gravity Vault Indoor Rock Gyms is coming soon to the Whitehall Mall in Whitehall Township. Pictured is a Gravity Vault location in Flemington, New Jersey.
The area will be lined with 14-inch foam flooring.
“The younger folks are the ones who really tend to gravitate toward bouldering,” Bogroff said. “So, with all of the nearby colleges, I think that area will be a big hit.”
The Gravity Vault Lehigh Valley location will offer monthly and annual memberships, along with multi-visit punch passes and day passes. Discounts will be available for youth and seniors.
Day passes will be $28 for adults, $25 for youth and $16 for belay only. Shoe, harness and chalk rentals also will be available.
Individual memberships will be available for month, 3-month and annual periods. Annual memberships, $945 for adults and $895 for youth, are most cost effective.
There also will be a variety of family membership options.
“A variety of options are available, but we generally advise people who climb two or three times a week to opt for an annual membership as it’s much more cost effective,” Bogroff said.
Bogroff, 48, grew up in Michigan where he was introduced to rock climbing by a middle school teacher, who was an avid climber.
He climbed outdoors and also in rock climbing gyms throughout his teen years, and his passion for climbing has continued into adulthood.
A new location of The Gravity Vault Indoor Rock Gyms is coming soon to the Whitehall Mall in Whitehall Township. Pictured is a Gravity Vault location in Flemington, New Jersey.
“I’ve been climbing since I was a kid, probably about age 10,” Bogroff said.
“As an adult, I moved to Flemington when my kids were really young, and now they’re kind of following in the same path that I was on in the 1980s. I’ve been taking them outdoors to climb and also traveling to indoor gyms in Chatham and Doylestown. Eventually, I realized that there was a market for indoor climbing in Flemington and decided to open my own gym. I saw a similar opportunity in the Lehigh Valley.”
Bogroff is excited to open another Gravity Vault facility, which also will offer staff-led climbing programs and classes for kids and adults of all skill levels, from beginners to advanced climbers.
He notes that climbing is a great social activity that provides “numerous physical and mental health benefits,” Bogroff said.
“Climbing is a full-body work that’s great for all ages, but what I’ve always really liked is that it’s also a mental workout,” Bogroff said.
“There’s a whole head game around mapping out strategies, problem solving as you go and just building your confidence. For some people, that’s just a matter of getting over a fear of heights and trusting their prep and practice. Climbing is also a great way to bond with others. It makes for a great family activity and also a date night. In Flemington, we’ve even had people who met at the gym end up getting married.”
The Whitehall facility also will offer opportunities for youth to join competitive climbing teams that travel worldwide, as well as summer camps featuring a mix of indoor and outdoor climbing.
“We’re planning to host field trips to local climbing areas like Ralph Stover State Park,” Bogroff said.
The upcoming of opening of The Gravity Vault’s first Lehigh Valley location is more welcome news for the Whitehall Mall, which has been undergoing redevelopment over the past few years.
A Floor & Decor store operates at the Whitehall Mall in Whitehall Township.
In late 2023, Floor & Decor, a specialty retailer of hard-surface flooring, held a grand opening of its new regional location at 1259 Whitehall Mall. The new store occupies the site of a former Sears department store.
Additionally, Delaware County-based convenience store and gas station Wawa, with more than 1,000 locations in six states and Washington D.C., is shown at the site of the mall’s former Sears Auto Center, at MacArthur and Mickley roads, according to the plan, presented by the mall’s leasing agent, CBRE.
The plan indicates that Wawa has signed a lease at the Whitehall location and shows the Wawa logo atop a 5,616-square-foot building.
Wawa has not responded to a message seeking confirmation of the plan.
The conceptual redevelopment site plan also shows that a Starbucks location has been proposed at the former Wells Fargo building on Grape Street and that there are letters of intent being negotiated for a handful of spaces, including spaces that previously housed Bed Bath & Beyond, buybuy Baby and arts and crafts chain Michaels.
It also shows a planned pad site with a drive-thru being available between Floor & Decor and Mission BBQ.
Washington Prime Group, the real estate investment trust that owns Whitehall Mall, has not communicated more details on the proposed changes, only confirming that redevelopment is underway.
“A redevelopment plan is underway to bring new retailers and experiences to our guests," a spokesperson said in a written statement in May 2023. "Whitehall Mall remains committed to providing a dynamic mix of options for the community. We will share more details as we are able.”
