Aug. 21, 2001
The Weight Is Over
University Pumped About GW’s Recently Opened
Premier Fitness Facility, Grand Opening Ceremony Aug. 29
By Thomas
Kohout
Like any good exercise program, the consistent and deliberate approach
to constructing the GW Health and Wellness Center has produced stunning
results. Visitors to the newly opened fitness mecca will marvel not
just at the quality of the facility, but also at the scope of exercise
opportunities now available to the University community.
The grand opening of the facility, situated at the corner of 23rd and
G streets, is scheduled for Wednesday, Aug. 29 from 4–6:30 pm.
The ribbon cutting, led by President Trachtenberg, will include equipment
demonstrations, tours of the eight-floor 189,000-square-foot facility,
and enrollment information. This event is the culmination of more than
a decade of planning, design, and construction.
Because the University developed a facility capable of accommodating
a wide range of interests, the result is an array of options few private
facilities could even match, says Andre Julien, assistant athletic director
for health, wellness, and recreation. “Many fitness and athletic
clubs are specialized in one or two areas, but the Health and Wellness
Center covers everything from free weights and universal equipment,
intramural sports, racquetball and squash, aerobics, to exercise sessions
such as spin classes.”
Membership fees are $295 per-year for faculty and staff, and rates for
students are just over $7 per credit-hour, a fraction of the fees charged
by lesser gyms in the area. “Annual rates at other local fitness
centers cost as much as $2,100, and they only offer one or two things,”
argues Julien.
To make enrollment easier, faculty and staff can pay their membership
fees through payroll deduction. For an employee on a biweekly pay schedule,
the deduction per-paycheck for membership would equal approximately
$11. Other options will be available, but membership will not be a pretax
deduction.
A special trial period is available for faculty, staff, and students
through Sept. 17. Anyone possessing a valid GWorld card may try out
the complex, but five weeks may not be long enough. Features of the
new facility include two gymnasia with cushioned maple strip flooring
large enough to accommodate four full basketball courts, but also marked
for volleyball and badminton play; a lap pool, which is expected to
be open later this fall; six squash courts; four racquetball courts;
a three-lane suspended jogging track coated with a special impact absorbing
surface; a large multi-purpose gym, with a movable partition that can
divide the room providing even more space for aerobics classes, spin
classes, wrestling, martial arts, or fencing; and between 100–150
pieces of equipment including rowing machines, life cycles, and free
weights, not to mention spacious locker rooms, a meeting room, Einstein
Brothers Bagel shop, and a juice bar.
The transition to the new Health and Wellness Center marks a change
for more than just fitness buffs. Smith Center facilities will now be
dedicated to varsity athletics and major events. The change will provide
much greater flexibility and access for everyone involved.
“This is a win for everybody. Students, staff, and faculty will
be affected less by the closing of the Smith Center for varsity athletics
and special events,” says Tony Vecchione, assistant athletic director
for facilities. “Varsity athletes win in the long run because more
space will be created for them in the Smith Center.”
For instance, because the intramural basketball season runs from October
through March, games had to be scheduled around the volleyball and men’s
and women’s basketball seasons. “That meant teams were only
able to play about six games each season, ” says Bryan Haunert,
assistant director for intramural sports and sport clubs. “Now
we can schedule one game a week, and we’ve added seven new tournaments.”
Julien anticipates between 2,000–3,000 people coming through the
facility, which is open from 7 am –10 pm Monday through Saturday,
and 11 am–8 pm Sundays.
Send feedback to: bygeorge@gwu.edu
