Main Campus to see addition of fitness center at Centennial

With the opening of the Wellness and Recreation Center and the closing of the Depot, students are left with no workout facility on Main Campus. Soon that will change.

 Using workout equipment and televisions from the Depot and making use of the Department of Kinesiology’s former lab, a smaller workout room will be created for students to use to get in a quick workout at the Centennial Center.

Student Government Association President Evan Karanovich says that after having several discussions and keeping in mind several factors of cost, it was decided that the Centennial Center would be the most logical place.

“There was a lot of conversation about having a location on campus for a workout facility, but we need something to where we would not have to have a lot of overhead cost, when you have workers and when you have building maintenance,” Karanovich said. “The Depot is not self sufficient, it took money. This will be very self sufficient for the most part.”

Designed similar to a hotel workout room, this exercise hub will be unmonitored and made to be used by students at their own risk. The facility will house cardio and weight machines, as well as a rack of different size dumbbells.

Before the facility can be opened, power and electrical issues need to be researched. Michael Rickenbaker, university architect and director of facilities planning, says he would like to start moving the equipment from the Depot

as soon as possible, but first these issues must be considered.

“Some of the equipment moves easily and doesn’t require any power but all of the treadmills (require power). We are going to have to work on either increasing or changing or revising the power,” Rickenbaker said.

Rickenbaker went on to say that he would like to keep renovation costs at a minimum.

“To say I’m trying to spend as little as possible would be accurate,” Karanovich said. “I’m just trying to get us over there. I want to be able to use it some this semester, but I can’t make any promises, because if we get in there and find out we have some issue with the power it could slow us down. I’m just hoping it’s not a major showstopper.”

Jimmy Wilson, assistant athletic director, added that the room is up to the standard it needs to be, cosmetically, but as of now there is no set budget as to how much it will cost for the project to be completed.

“As I understand it very little will have to be done to make the room ready,” Wilson said. “The tile in the room is already a rubberized type tile and what we are putting in there are the stationary bikes, the ellipticals, treadmills, its going to be more of a cardio workout room than anything else.”