Addison-Penzak JCC

My husband works with adults with developmental disabilities, so he brings groups here for a variety of activities fairly often. I had always wanted to come see what the hubbub was about but never really had an opportunity to do so until last night, when I helped out an event his company was throwing.
From what I was able to see in my limited time there, the facility is very clean and well-​run. The event was held in the first conference room by the House of Bagels (a nice surprise, though it was closed for the evening) just after going through what looked like the main entrance. It was super hard to find parking but that was understandable once I really got a look at the size of the building and saw people who were there for all different reasons coming in and out of the 2 other entrances I walked past. It was nice to be checked in by a security guard, whose level of effectiveness I cannot speak to but who was a comfort to see regardless given the scale of everything.
The room we occupied was large enough for our purposes and seemed to be cared for quite… tenderly, if you’ll allow me to use a weird word to describe it. Toward the end of the event, a gentleman from the JCC approached us and as we discussed clean up, he mentioned that staff would help break down the tables and chairs. I was impressed by this, because in my limited experience with hosting events, usually venues leave everything up to you if you aren’t paying them beaucoup bucks for their trouble.
I would definitely love the chance to come back and check out everything else they have to offer here. My husband loves to play tennis, so that may even give us a reason to join!

I had a 3 day trial to this gym and the first two days everything went really well. I really enjoyed the facilities and actually thought about joining. On the 3^rd day they said I could not come in because my name was not at the front. And how is that even my fault? This really upset me because I drove all the way their for nothing. They for sure lost my business and also my fiends who also wanted to join this gym.

Noelle’s Unilocal Notebook 2016
January 1, 2016
The Addison Penzak Jewish Community Center is located in Los Gatos, California. Last year my mom suggested we enroll her grandson in Preschool at the JCC.
There are several types of membership:
Full
Social
Corporate
Network (allows access all 5 Bay Area JCC locations)
In order to have your child at the Addison Penzak JCC Preschool you need to be current members at the JCC. We opted for full membership at the JCC which allows members to access the gym, pool, preschool, and discounts on varies activities within the community center. The JCC is clean and well maintained on the community center side and preschool area. There is security on both the JCC and preschool entrances, access is granted with our membership cards. Staff and security at the JCC are professional, kind and welcoming.
— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - -
Addison Penzak JCC Preschool
— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - -
Before my mom passed away in November of 2015, she was able to accompany me several times in picking up her little LoveBug from preschool, visit her grandson’s preschool classroom and meet his teachers. I’m grateful that my mom encouraged us to enroll Ian at the JCC preschool, it was one of the best decisions we’ve made. The teachers and assistants are professional, warm and kind. The classrooms are clean and well organized. I grew up in an interfaith family (Catholic & Jewish); it’s nice to see my son learning about Judaism and learning some Hebrew.
You don’t need to be Jewish to attend the preschool. More than half of my son’s preschool class isn’t Jewish. There are children from all different faiths in my son’s preschool class. Preschool is part-​time and if you need extended care they offer before and after school day care. APJCC Preschool is billed monthly and all families are locked into a ten month contract. The tuition is pricy but it’s pretty much the going rate for all preschools in the surrounding areas of Silicon Valley.
–On Fridays you can purchase Challah in the preschool lobby (it’s from a local bakery in SF)
–Preschool runs from 18 months to 5 years old
–APJCC Preschool observes Kashrut, lunches you send your little one with to preschool must be dairy, parve, fish (no shellfish).
–APJCC preschool provides one mid morning snack
–No peanuts or tree-​nuts allowed in lunches (this is good because I’m allergic and don’t want my son in contact with items that could cause anaphylactic shock in me, I carry two Epi-​Pens).
–They accept kids that haven’t been potty trained
–You must provide diapers and wipes if your child isn’t potty trained.
Overall, it’s a wonderful preschool.
— - — - — -
APJCC
— - — - — -
The gym is great, clean and well run. I’m glad we’re full members. They have discounts on plays and classes with full membership. If you’re looking for a quick snack or bite to eat they have a House of Bagels café onsite. I’ve been to the House of Bagels with my son after preschool on occasion.
If you need someone to watch your little ones when exercising at the gym they have onsite daycare ((this is charged hourly and you must be onsite when your little one is in daycare)). Just fill out contract and either buy a prepaid card or you may pay as you go with cash. We purchased a $ 90 prepaid card for daycare. It should be noted that they also offer Parent’s morning off or afternoon off– you may have advance reservations, 3 hours in the morning or afternoon for childcare at the daycare ((this enables you to run errands or go to doctors appoints sans your little ones)).
So happy we found a good preschool and community center locally! It’s such a nice community– My old college professor and my doctors are members at the APJCC :) If you’re looking for a family oriented center the APJCC is a wonderful place!
Noelle’s Notes
Great Community Centre
Excellent Preschool
Fantastic Gym
Engaging community events

Was a member of the JCC LG for a couple years, really enjoyed the «low key» feel — never felt over-​crowded. Very family oriented, with many classes and plenty of equipment. The membership price is reasonable too.

The JCC Tennis Programs are not compliant with USTA safety code.
I have played USTA league tennis since 1997. In 2010 I joined the JCC to participate in USTA league and over the five years the safety of the courts has diminished.
Specifically, there is bird and rodent feces on the courts. The lights are poorly maintained and very dim for night play. The staff are non responsive to safety issues.
I have evaluated my options and believe that a campaign towards creating a leadership change is far more productive than me leaving for another club.
The JCC promotes junior tennis programs. Nearly eight hours per week I see up and coming junior tennis players learning tennis skills. I am concerned for their health and safety being subjected to play in unclean courts.
Parents of junior tennis players should talk to JCC management about the need for regular maintenance.
I will update my posting when regular maintenance is performed. A simple workflow and process change by JCC can achieve the safety standards required.
Respectfully, Patrick

While a lot of good can be said about the JCC, the same is not true about its landlord, the Jewish Federation of Silicon Valley. Its maintenance of the facilities is horrendous. For example, it has not bothered for years to eliminate exposed live electrical wires that are reachable even to a one-​year-​old. It fails to replace or repair tennis equipment. The tennis courts are embarrassingly filthy. Only a change in upper management may correct the problem.

The JCC in Los Gatos is where you go to if you want to be demeaned and disrespected if you are a tennis player. While they have tennis facilities, it is deemed to be not worthy of the JCC’s responsibilities of cleanliness, maintenance, or such.
Example issues:
— The courts are so dirty that even the public courts seem shiny and clean
— Health hazards abound in the form of bird and rodent feces splattered all over the courts and benches
— Leaves all over the courts in Fall which remain there as a hazard to playing, as the courts are never cleaned
— When lights get fused it takes months (in plural) to fix, after multiple folks requesting multiple times each
— Staff makes up stories to insinuate and bring down tennis players; staff is openly disrespectful to players, eg. Erin who takes it upon herself to humiliate tennis players
— Broken nets take months of complaining to fix/​replace. The last time the nets were replaced, they were left hanging lower than the requisite height and it took the staff many months (in plural) to fix the heights of the nets
The two biggest issues to highlight are: (a) it feels really icky and unhealthy to play at the courts because of the amount of bird and rodent poop on the courts and on the benches (I will try posting pictures), (b) on every complaint through the last few years to the leadership there is an answer (a lie to ward us off) that the issue will be taken care of (for example, wash the court), but it never ever gets done.

I love this club. I moved over from another club I had belonged to for many years and find this one suits my needs much better. It is bright, clean, and friendly. The variety of classes here is very good and the instructors are great. I go mainly to Pilates classes and love Elaine and Juliette — the only instructors here I have experienced. They are experienced and know how to teach. A great club by even the highest standards!

I’ve taken a few Zumba classes here and loved them. The instructor (Amy) is incredibly upbeat and clearly loves what she’s doing. Her enthusiasm is infectious and makes hitting the gym the best part of your day.

Joined JCC since 2 summers ago, mainly for its outdoor heated swimming pool and yoga classes. Recently started to use their jogging and weight machines.
**Love: it’s 5 min drive from home and work; facility is clean with complementary towels; friendly staff; easy parking most of time (except around 4pm while parents are picking up their preschoolers next door); a few decent yoga instructors; never had to wait in line for lap swim or workout machine (comparing with while I went to 24 hr fitness). Security guard at front door which makes me feel safe. I’ve also forgotten my favorite sunglasses and jacket there and got both back safe and sound.
**Needs improvement: there is a separate dressing room for swimming pool but only outdoor showers. In order to take a real shower I need to put on swim coverup and walk to shower in the main building. Some popular yoga classes are overly crowded and need to arrive in advance to secure a spot. More consistent membership staffing, as I usually upgrade the membership in summer months to bring my kids to the pool and drop them when weather gets cold. It took me at least 10 calls/​emails/​talking to staff in person all together last month to get it done correctly and avoid being overcharged.
Other than that, I highly recommend this club. I have yet tried their cardio/​aerobic classes but when I walked by the class it seems pretty motivating and energetic.
I’ve also heard good review on their swim instructors and planning to enroll my kids next summer.
I also hope they can extend their gym hours till little later. After all there are very little time left to exercise after putting kids to bed.

We bought a family package and was excited to go to JCC Los Gatos on a weekely basic.
Overall the facility is clean. Classes are limitted. Staff teaching classes are just ok. The worst teaching staff is the steps instructor rachel. The management had stopped keeping track of how many people attended her class and she doesnt care how many show up. There were times when only 6 or 7 showed up because she sucks and Jcc doesnt cancel classes of those who seems to careless if class has enough people. They dont change or offer new classes.
Jcc needs to stop being lazy and start tracking how many people attend a class. Drop those that seems dead. Same old same old just makes this place a torture to come. Need to move out old crap like rachel and change with young enthusiastic ones. Rachel seems to have an attitude of «dare to drop me…»
I am sure there are others who would want and appreciate teaching unlike rachel whose attitude sucks who looks like craps. I think her full name is rachel young?
We decided to cancel our family membership package.

Been a member now for 8 years and the JCC is an awesome place to get fit and socialize with top notch Silicon Valley individuals.

The JCC is a great place to work out. Gym is always clean, plenty of equipment and friendly staff.

The best thing that can be said about a gym is that it inspires you to work out there a lot — –and this one offers so much that it brings me in almost every day when I’m in San Jose. I go back and forth between San Jose and Washington DC so work out at this gym as well as another one on the East Coast. APJCC offers tons of classes so you can find a way to get in some sort of exercise at almost any time of day. I’ve taken yoga, cardio and strength classes, and the individual instructors are very different but all very good, and there’s a wide variety for all fitness levels. People in the classes are friendly, and the management seems responsive to suggestions and interested in knowing what people want. The JCC is so amazing that whenever I head back East, I try to get the management of the other gym to offer some of the classes that I’ve discovered.
Although I don’t I have any personal experience with their swim lessons, I’ve been extremely impressed with the quality of children’s instruction that I’ve observed at the pool. Those instructors are awesome and so patient and they really know what they’re doing with the smallest kids.
I love the JCC and can say nothing but good things about it!

I joined here two months ago after being at 24 hour fitness for the past 2 years. I love the fact that the member fee per month is affordable, parking is a breeze, the equipment is new and clean (I never have to wait in line), plus the gym is not over crowded. I train here 6 days a week and get my $‘s worth. I also like that the entire facility is super clean, that is a BIG plus!

I love the APJCC! The fitness center is large and clean and I never have issues using my
preferred equipment. Personal trainer Christina W. is amazing and a true expert in her field as is Rachel, a group fitness instructor. Other great perks are the friendly front desk staff, yummy bagels and salads in the café and childcare services for kids of all ages.

There is a warning in this review. Please read ahead!!!
We head to the JCC two times a week for soccer class. Therefore I cannot tell you about the rest of the facility. However the staff is friendly, the field is fine and now for my warning:
Today I went to the bagel shop inside the facility. I wanted to order my child a bagel as a snack. It was the end of the day so they had all the last bagels in a bowl on the counter. I thought this was mildly weird but still went ahead with my order. I ordered one plain bagel and the woman behind the counter picks a bagel up out of the bowl with her bare hand and puts it in a bag. And then rings it up at the register. I’m no expert, but I believe that there is a health violation there.
So the moral of the story, is if you visit the JCC, it would be wise to bring your own snacks.

Dear Unilocal users,
It has been 5 years since I first joined the Los Gatos JCC and boy has it changed. Although the amenities offered have not changed, the services have (I’m speaking to you tennis department). As a tennis player, it is very important how the courts and players are treated.
Here is a quick inventory why their customer service completely sucks:
— courts are not cleaned, its almost like playing on clay courts w/​out the clay
— you will find a lot of rat and bird droppings around the court… yeah your ball can easy bounce in rat poop that can then get on your hands
— poor maintenance of courts and nets
— unresponsive to members’ requests
— singled out by management for blocking the fire lane when other parties doing the same have not been approached
— very rude interaction with some staff in regards to tennis accommodations
If you want to feel like you are being discriminated you will be accommodated at the Los Gatos JCC.
Save yourself some money and find a club that maintains their facilities equally and treat ALL their members with respect.

I thought this would be like my experience at the JCC in Foster City which was overwhelmingly postiive, but it wasn’t!
I faced nothing but absolute disappointment here. I got hooked up by my high tech company to get a great corporate rate and have them cover a significant portion of the tab, but I still feel like I got ripped off. They bill you a month in advance AND require 30 days cancellation. Just to make sure you’ll be real sore if you think about quitting.
A few things:
They push sales really hard (a «getting started» package), and what I really wanted was to just feel free to explore and check the place out without being pressured into spending a lot of money. But I succumbed and got the package for 3 sessions. Still, it left a funny feeling in me and instead of doing the physical training like I had originally planned I just used the certificates on massage.
It seems like what’s going on is there is an expected formula for the types of workout and physical activity you have to do at this gym and you can’t just go in and do your thing and get out which is what I am used to at most gyms. I am the kind of person that likes to keep by myself most of the time, and there really is no space to do that here. Enforced camaraderie is the rule, so if you don’t fit the niche market they provide here then don’t bother.
Lastly but most importantly, the facilities need some serious improvement to compete with even a low-​end gym like 24-​hour fitness. There is no swimsuit drying machine. The tile on the pool is all faded. The field out back is in poor shape, and there is a long uncomfortable path from the locker room to the pool.
I don’t see anything redeemable about this place. For the hoity-​toity neighboorhood that Los Gatos is, I am surprised that this place really feels like it’s out in the boonies. Their prices match the neighborhood, but I guarantee – go to any other modern gym in the area and you will see a big difference in perks and modern conveniences.
And the worst thing … NO HOT TUB!!!
But hey, if you are looking for a clinical family vibe for you and your kids, this might be your place.

They call themselves a family community center however when I cancelled on January 9^th the family feel left. They still wanted to charge me for February even though I cancelled in early January. Boooo. Yes their rules stipulate a 30 day advance notice but I really don’t understand «why». They have no good answer other than it’s a «rule». Rules that hurt your community are not good rules. Here we are in March and they are still charging me. I feel taken advantage of… as if they didn’t have enough of my money. The person I was corresponding with stopped emailing as well which makes me feel like when a person cancels they just don’t care anymore. I was a member for a year. Glad we cancelled as they really don’t represent what I would classify as a fairly run operation and a «family».
FWIW…the facility is beautiful. I just care more about how I am treated. Sorry JCC.