For MI Athletic Club (MIAC) owner Ginny Pietila, her new business is about building community, but also about giving her clients the individual attention they need to achieve their goals. She said she wants MI Athletic Club to be “a place for everyone.”

She has leveraged her more than “20 years of experience to build a unique studio in the heart of Mercer Island,” according to a gym-goer’s Facebook comment.

MIAC and Pietila have brought people together, organizing group runs to train for the MI Half, sponsoring 5K Fun Runs and offering classes for all ages —from teenagers to seniors.

Pietila, former co-owner of Club Emerald, said opening her own space has been a “dream for many years.”

She was “grateful, blown away and astounded by the amazing response” to the opening of the facility in February.

“It is not about the space, but the bodies, hearts and souls that we get to share our space with,” she said after the grand opening.

State-of-the-art equipment, including spin bikes, cardio pieces and a TRX suspension system, as well as a free weight area and locker rooms, are available to gym-goers.

There is no additional charge for group classes, but extra services include massage treatments and personal training. The TRX and combat group classes are the most popular, Pietila said, and online signup is recommended.

For more, visit www.miathleticclub.com.