American Muscle in Fox Lake closed for operating without business license

Fox Lake village officials said they were forced to close American Muscle and Fitness in March because it was found to be operating without a business license.

However, village officials said owners of the business at 600 S. Route 59 have applied for the proper license and could reopen soon.

Frank Urbina, head of the Fox Lake building department, said ownership of American Muscle and Fitness changed before February and the new owner did not obtain his own business license as required. The village was not notified of the change, he added.

Urbina said the owner of the 13,000-square-foot building remained the same.

The new owners were given more than a month to transfer the business license before the village forced the closure on March 19, Urbina said. The business was also fined $750.

“We didn’t want to close the business down, but they showed no movement to get the proper license in place and we had no choice,” he said Monday.

Calls to American Muscle and Fitness seeking comment were not returned. However, a message on there voice mail system said they are doing repairs, waiting for inspections and will open later this week.

Urbina, who designed the facility nearly 10 years ago while working as an architect, said the Lake County Health Department contacted the village in mid-February after several violations were found.

Officials found the business was operating without hot water, carpeting was black due to mold or dirt, and the electrical box was blocked by boxes.

Urbina said those items could have been fixed quickly and was not the reason it was shuttered.

“We gave them three weeks to apply for the required business permits to operate, but they never did so,” he said. “So, on March 5, we issued a second warning telling them they had seven days to apply for a business permit. They never did.”

Urbina said the owners have since applied for permits to operate and to fix the hot water heater.

“From our end, we are expediting it as fast as we can to get them open. Hopefully, they will have their license back in place by the end of the week,” he said.