ASI seeks student input on fitness center

Two open forums to discuss the possibility of a new recreation center on campus will be held today at 5:30 p.m. and Thursday at 1:30 p.m. in the Hive in the University Union.

In response to students' requests, the Associated Students Inc. board of directors began looking into building a recreation and fitness center on campus, which would give students the opportunity to meet their physical recreation needs while on campus.

A Recreation Center Task Force has been put together by ASI to determine the feasibility of building a recreation center here at CSUS.

"The open forum is being held to encourage students, faculty and staff to address concerns they may have about the project so we can build a facility that best supports their needs," said Jason Bryant, Chair of the Recreation Center Task Force.

The preliminary plans for the recreation center, if built, will include free-weights, aerobics, nautilus machines and more. According to Bryant, there has even been talk of the possibility of including aquatic facilities in the center.

The main concern of the task force is asking students for the money to build the center. Presently, ASI plans to introduce a referendum asking students to approve a fee increase that will provide the funds needed for the actual construction of the building.

ASI has not yet determined a monthly membership cost for students. This is one of the areas that the task force wants feedback on during this week's forums.

"Students will be willing to pay a small increase, especially when they know that they are the first priority," said Bryant. "I think this will be a great help in bringing students to the campus. Students are coming here from many campuses that have recreation centers already."

Many other campuses have recreation centers, including UC Davis, Cal Poly Pomona and San Diego State, whose center includes a rock-climbing facility.

"I got a chance to see the rock-climbing wall there last Saturday," said Bryant. "It is very attractive and successful."

The task force is responsible for gathering people to educate the campus community on the pros of building the recreation center.

"Students can actually save money by joining the center. It will be on campus and easy to use," said Bryant.