Fitness center to get upgrade
Toddlers squealing beneath the cascades of the mushroom fountain. Seniors silently pacing their cardiovascular workouts in a fitness room.
"This is not just a fitness center - this is a regional watering hole," Town of Tonawanda Recreation Director Daniel J. Wiles said this week, commenting on late-morning activity at the Aquatic and Fitness Center.
Ongoing maintenance has kept the facility mostly crisp and clean. But come summer, approximately $1.5 million will be spent to refresh the 17-year-old complex for the next generation.
Winters have pitted and cracked the sidewalk outside, Wiles noted during a tour. Inside, the bottom of the 50-meter pool is worn and discolored in spots.
Work is needed on the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems.
As the town's outdoor pools open this summer, the 50-meter pool will close for a couple of months. The "to-do" list includes reconstruction of its surface.
"This whole bottom is going to be scraped out, pounded out and redone," Wiles said.
The fitness center will close only briefly, while work is done on its air-conditioning system, and the entire building will be shuttered as the concrete at the entrance is replaced. The exterior also will be repointed and repainted and the landscaping redesigned.
"We should be open by Labor Day, all things considered," Wiles said.
Regardless, two-month extensions will be granted on all memberships because of the disruptions.
On April 7, the Town Board adopted a bond resolution, subject to a 30-day permissive referendum, to pay for the work.
With a current operating budget of $1.4 million, the center has been self-sustaining, Wiles said. He tracks the budget monthly, and if revenues are down, expenses are reduced accordingly. If revenues are up, money is reinvested in the facility.
Within the past year, updated exercise equipment and televisions were added to the fitness center, which has undergone two expansions since the complex opened in January 1991.
Overall, membership at the Aquatic and Fitness Center totals between 3,700 and 3,800. Myriad fee schedules accommodate residents and nonresidents.
The facility also is home to the Aquettes, the synchronized swimming team, which will host a national competition next year, and the Titans, a competitive swim club.
"It's a unique facility, because of what it has to offer," said Councilman Daniel J. Crangle, chairman of the Town Board's Youth, Parks and Recreation Committee.
By Janice L. Habuda
jhabuda@buffnews.com
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