UB students who feel that Alumni Arena's workout facility is overcrowded or outdated may be given the option to workout in a state-of-the-art-facility on North Campus.
Earlier this month, representatives from a consultation company and an architecture firm came to UB to conduct focus groups composed of students and faculty members to discuss the feasibility of building an on-campus recreation center that would not be affiliated with the Department of Athletics.
The idea to build a recreation center at UB has been on the table for about three or four years because there is not enough space in Alumni Arena for athletic teams to coexist with students who just want to work out, said Andrea Constantino, director of student unions and activities.
"We're examining the need for more space at Alumni, because the athletes need space in the arena, and there are a lot of club sports at the university that need space (to practice)," said Constantino.
Officials from UB traveled to other universities in the Mid-Atlantic Conference to see what types of recreation facilities they offer to their students, she said.
Andrew Schweickert, a consultant from the firm Brailsford and Dunlavey, and Malcolm Lawrie, vice-president of Cannon Design, asked students in focus groups what they feel is missing from recreation options at UB and which current recreation options they find unsatisfactory.
Costantino expects a formal recommendation to arrive in February of 2003, which will include suggestions for the makeup and location of the facility and how construction for the center should be funded.
According to Schweickert and Lawrie, students in every focus group said that they do not feel comfortable working out in Alumni Arena and that the workout center in Richmond Quad does not offer equipment students would like to use.
Sarah Anderson, a sophomore in the School of Management, attended a focus group held at the Wilkeson Coffee House and said that while there is enough space in the Richmond workout center to do cardiovascular exercises, the gym is very limited when it comes to weight machines.
According to Schweickert, the facility could be a place for students to work out, socialize with their friends, eat snacks or just relax.
Costantino said the final recommendation could include an indoor recreation center complete with cardiovascular and weight training, as well as a rock climbing wall, a recreation pool and outdoor intramural fields.
Brailsford & Dunlavey will also gauge whether students would be willing to pay for a new facility and alternative funding options, according to Costantino. She said schools with recreation centers similar to the one that could be built at UB charge their students a recreation fee.
Schweickert estimated that a state-of-the-art-facility would cost every student between $50 and $100 annually.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
