ENCINITAS — A longtime Leucadia yoga studio will shut down this month after its new owners say an unexpected rent hike proposal — nearly double their current rate — made a long-term lease impossible.
Yoga 101 co-owner Robin Gallo, who purchased the business with her partner Chad Delude in December 2024, said the studio will hold its final classes on Dec. 19.
“For me, it’s the loss of my entire life savings. Losing everything with the flick of a pen has been really difficult to swallow,” Gallo said. “I invested everything I had because I believed in this community and this studio. I feel awful for my students. Some have been coming here for decades.”
The closure of the 22-year staple follows months of uncertainty surrounding the studio’s lease and building concerns during an ongoing renovation.
In October, the studio filed a formal complaint with the city alleging building code violations, including inadequate fire separation, roof drainage failures, and a broken stairway cable that remained unrepaired for months.
The commercial building on North Coast Highway 101 is also home to Leucadia 101 MainStreet, Caves Wine Bar & Shop, Kyle Grace Design and Grandview Aesthetic and Wellness.
The landlord, Anoop Patel, principal of private equity firm Canterbury Capital, denied allegations of disrepair and said his group never intended for the studio to close.
“We liked the studio a lot. We wanted them to stay,” said Patel, who also owns The Back Nine Golf indoor simulator in Carlsbad. “It’s never been our intent to end the studio or push them out. At the end of the day, we are a small business too, and we’ve always tried to work with our tenants in good faith.”
A letter of intent sent in December 2024 showed a monthly rent of $3,850, with a gradual increase to $6,750 over seven years. In June, however, the owners received a draft lease calling for a 93% rent increase starting in 2026, with rent rising 117% over five years.
Patel told The Coast News that rents in the building had been below market for years and were no longer sustainable, adding that the bank told them they couldn’t maintain that rate.
“I feel like I was misled,” Gallo said. “I wouldn’t have invested my life savings if I had seen the actual numbers; I never would have taken the risk.”
In response to the rate increase, Patel said the lease proposal was intended as a starting point for further discussion between the parties.
“It’s sticker shock, but looking at it as just a number without context, I don’t think that’s fair,” Patel said. “It’s less than the Lumberyard and other projects down the road. We also never said the amount was final. We made clear it was negotiable. At no point did we receive a counterproposal. It felt like they didn’t want to be there.”
However, Gallo said the couple attempted to negotiate a compromise, but Canterbury rejected their counteroffer and terms.
According to documents provided by the owners, Gallo and Delude purchased the studio for $100,000 after initial discussions with the landlord about keeping the rent consistent for the first year while construction continued below the studio.
Gallo said a formal lease did not arrive in the months that followed, but they continued paying rent month-to-month while investing roughly $50,000 in improvements — new floors, lighting, a rebuilt entryway and upgraded sound and heating systems — all with the landlord’s knowledge.
In February, as downstairs tenants began occupying newly renovated units, noise concerns arose. According to Gallo, the sound issues started only after the landlord’s contractors removed the dropped ceiling, insulation and fire-rated drywall in the lower units, leaving only a half-inch plywood subfloor between businesses.
According to Gallo’s complaint, the removal eliminated the mandatory one-hour fire separation between commercial units and exposed electrical conduit, plumbing and HVAC lines.
“We made no changes to class times or occupancy from the previous owner,” Gallo said. “The (noise) issues were caused by the construction underneath us.”
Patel maintains that all work was performed with licensed professionals and approved permits.
“Everything was done by the book,” Patel said.
A city spokesperson told The Coast News that officials are reviewing the concerns outlined in Gallo’s complaint.
“The city recently received a Citizen Complaint alleging that unpermitted construction occurred at 1410 N. Coast Highway 101 in 2023,” the city said in an email. “In response to the complaint, Code Enforcement conducted an investigation and confirmed a building permit was issued in June 2023 for exterior and interior tenant improvements of the property.
“At this time, the Code Enforcement Division and Fire Prevention Bureau are in the process of coordinating a joint onsite inspection of the property to determine if the property configuration is consistent with the approved building plans and the requirements of the California Fire Code.”
According to Patel, the noise complaints largely arose after the yoga studio started offering higher-intensity fitness classes, with participants frequently dropping weights during workouts.
However, Gallo and Delude said that at the time of the first noise complaint in February, they had made no changes to the classes — other than shifting a morning class 30 minutes earlier to 9 a.m. — that had supported the business for 22 years.
Gallo said the studio attempted to ease the sound issues by upgrading to thicker mats, purchasing a more sophisticated sound system, moving the speakers to the highest points of the ceiling, installing a partition to reduce the room size and adjusting class schedules.
Patel said he believed both sides were working toward a solution. The Carlsbad landlord proposed raising the floor at Yoga 101 to address noise complaints, but the work would require the studio to either permanently restrict use of half the space or temporarily shut down to complete the job.
“We offered to upgrade the flooring at no cost,” Patel said. “I think we could’ve resolved the noise issue.”
In a May 22 email, Patel told Gallo and Delude that he was “committed to finding a workable solution that supports your business while addressing ownership’s concerns.”
“There is diminished interest in continuing to support a studio or similar fitness use on the upper floor,” Patel continued. “There are several factors motivating a transition to office or a lighter use, but the vibration issue is certainly at the forefront in the short term as it is considered unsustainable.”
Patel also noted in the email that there was “no formal lease or assignment in place for your occupancy nor option to extend,” despite the studio owners asking repeatedly for a long-term rental agreement since Oct. 14, 2024, according to Gallo.
Gallo said they would agree to the temporary closure only if compensated for lost revenue and wages, an offer Canterbury declined.
The yoga studio owners responded by issuing a notice of non-payment, saying they would withhold further rent until the building was made safe. The landlord informed them he no longer supported having a yoga studio in the space and wanted them out, Gallo said.
“We’re hoping to find some peace here at some point,” Patel said, noting plans for additional renovations at the property. “On a positive note, we’ve had success here that we want to build on. We’re excited to have Skye Walker create a mural, and we hope to bring in a local Leucadia restaurant. We’re sad, but we want to keep our dream alive.”
The studio’s final class will be held next Friday. For Gallo, a longtime yoga instructor who grew up in Southern California, the closure marks not only the end of her investment but also the loss of what she sees as an important community space.
“This wasn’t how it was supposed to go,” Gallo said. “We’re staying open until the very last day because the studio deserves that. I just hope the community knows how hard we tried.”
The studio’s impending closure has been especially devastating for some of her students, Gallo said, adding that many of her students “have been in tears all week.”
One regular, 82-year-old Carmella Kemp, has practiced Bikram yoga every day at Yoga 101 for the past 10 years.
“I’m disappointed and sad. I’ve been going there for more than 10 years, and I was very happy with the new owners,” Kemp told The Coast News. “The people were always friendly and easy to talk to, and they always made you feel welcome.”
