Fitness Center booked, may not have room for spouses of students
The Fitness Center had its grand opening just two weeks ago, and since then, statistics show it is booked.
Robyn Braegger, manager of the Fieldhouse facilities, said the Fitness Center is constantly busy. There are times when students have to wait in line for a machine.
“We have from 70 to 100 students from about 5 to 10 p.m. alone,” she said.
Students can enjoy the facilities with just a swipe of their student ID card.
However, complaints have been filed that the spouses of married students cannot use the Fitness Center, even if they have purchased a spouse card from Campus Recreation allowing them access to almost all other campus facilities.
Matt Ekins, student advocate for the Associated Students of Utah State University, said, “A lot of spouses buy the card with the intention to use it just for the Fieldhouse. It is frustrating for them to get there; they’ve purchased it, and then they’re denied access.”
Shelly Swasey, ASUSU Athletics vice president, said, “Although we want to do everything possible to accommodate them, it is too early to tell if we will be able to grant passes for student spouses when the Fitness Center can’t even accommodate all the students.”
Swasey explained that different options are being explored.
“One thing that we are thinking about doing is trying to get some funding to buy a couple pieces of cardio equipment to put in the HPER as a plan B overflow,” she said.
Ekins said, “That’s definitely a possibility. I think for now it is the quickest fix, but my personal outlook is that I would like to see the spouses get some kind of access, whether it is restricted to certain hours. It’s a nice facility, and I think the spouses would have minimal impact on that.”
Many think the facility is already overpopulated.
Stephanie Sutherland, a junior, said, “I was there on Saturday and there was a huge waiting line, so I just left.”
Another option is to open some of the 150 faculty memberships to student spouses. Only 50 of the allotted memberships have been purchased.
“We are getting ready to take these ideas to the Student Fee Board for their vote,” Swasey said.
Senior Melissa Thomas said, “Regardless if it is faculty or students, there would be 100 more people crowding the Fitness Center.”
Melissa Gregory, a freshman, said, “I know that some people don’t like to go alone, but it is crowded all of the time. Otherwise, it wouldn’t matter. It would be best if they had to pay and only had special hours for student spouses. If those times were posted, we would know what to expect.”
Sutherland said, “I want them to have the benefits, but it’s just not big enough. They need to wait until it calms down. Maybe during the summer they can open it to spouses.”
The facility was paid for and is maintained by second-tier tuition.
Cobi Larsen, a junior, said, “It’s our money paying for it, so the student should have first priority no matter what.”
–julia@cc.usu.edu