Longtime friends hope to launch Main St. business sometime in April or May

By MINDY KEPFIELD

Staff Writer

Ryan Franz, a longtime fitness enthusiast, is betting on teamwork to launch a new venture on Hillsboro’s Main St. that could be the business of both their dreams.

He will continue work part-time at Dale’s Supermarket, a grocery store run by his father Ray Franz, as he and partner Josiah Driggers work to open a fitness center at 115 Main St.

Franz has loved lifting weights and training since he was an athlete at Hillsboro High.

The pair is shooting for an opening date of April or May after remodeling the existing retail space into a full-service gym.

“It will be pretty much full of equipment,” he said.

“There will be cardio, free weights, weight machines, you name it.”

He and Driggers became good friends in high school and have worked well together ever since, he said.

Driggers is still attending Emporia State University where he is participating in track and field.

He plans to finish college in about two years.

Franz said trainers will be available most of the time, but the gym also will be open 24 hours a day for busy people who need a workout.