UTC recreation center popular

Hayley Martin spent two years at UTC breezing past Maclellan Gymnasium. She says students almost never went inside the university's former exercise center.

Now she sees plenty of reasons to check out its replacement, the new Aquatic and Recreation Center.

"There's really no comparison," said Ms. Martin, a communications major. "At Maclellan, all the equipment was kind of broken, nobody really went, and now there's people here all the time."

The center celebrated its grand opening last August and, if a few packed nights this week are an indication, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga students haven't written it off as a fad.

FAST FACTS* 1 all-purpose court can be changed into two basketball courts, four volleyball courts, eight badminton courts or two indoor soccer courts* 3 different indoor climbing walls* 14,000 square feet -- about seven tennis courts --- make up the complex's exercise space* 1/8th-mile indoor track comes equipped with windows overlooking campusHOURS OF OPERATION* 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday-Thursday* 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday* 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday* 2 to 11 p.m. SundaySource: UTC

"You can just come in anytime and do what you need to stay fit," said Michelle Tribue, an accounting student. "And you'll never gain that 'freshman 15.'"

Located on East Fifth Street across from McKenzie Arena, the facility resembles little more than another hub for chemistry labs or English classrooms. Venturing inside cures that misconception.

"I absolutely love it," said Axel Marshall, a biology student. "There's so much to do. I just got done rock climbing right now. Some of the machines are really high-tech, they use air pressure and stuff as opposed to just lifting weights."

Newest equipment

Flanked by blue and gold banners, the center's three floors are dotted with "the newest equipment," according to Ron Nelson, director of campus recreation. After students swipe their identification cards, they enter an area holding the first of many different weight and cardiovascular sections.

"Every college student expects a facility like this," Mr. Nelson said. "I think it's helped our university's image so much. It's making students healthier and happier, but they had to buy in first."

Student funds

And buy in, they did. The facility fully was subsidized through an annual student activity fee paid with tuition. Mr. Nelson said students voted three times for the fee increase before workers broke ground on the project in May 2007.

According to officials, the first stage of construction cost $16.5 million with the second stage, now under way, estimated at $8.3 million. The latter figure will fund an indoor pool along with a 20-person hot tub and a 156-foot-long water slide. Last week, crews worked on pool construction near a temporary tunnel entrance to the main building.

"The only thing that students are saying is that they were expecting the aquatics part to be ready along with everything else," Ms. Martin said.

Pool by 2001

The "state-of-the art leisure pool" should be completed by April 2011, and Mr. Nelson believes it will be worth the wait.

"It'll have all these water toys in it," he said. "We'll have the exercise classes, the water slide, the water volleyball tournaments. There's no other school in the state of Tennessee that has this. It's brand-new technology."

For now, at least one student seems happy with exactly what her money has funded thus far.

"Just seeing everybody working out, it motivates you to want to exercise more," said Sonia Sykes, a junior business management major. "It's making me want to be more healthy."

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