The city has taken the first step towards a potential renovation and expansion of the fitness centre at Servus Credit Union Place.
Administration has awarded a $40,000 contract to a Vancouver-based consulting company that will look at how Servus Place currently uses space in its fitness centre, as well as give the city an idea of what kind of work will be needed in the next 10 years to keep up with membership growth.
Jack Ballash, program and service manager at Servus Place, said four groups were interviewed, but CEI Architecture/Workun Garrick Partnership won the contract. The company has an office in Edmonton through the Workun Garrick Partnership.
“We’ve given them a number of areas [in the building] to look at, and look at how to use them better,” he said. “We’re looking at repurposing and redevelopment of the current space.”
Ballash said the review comes on the heels of recent customer user surveys that said the facility is near or at capacity during peak hours between 4:30 and 8 p.m. Between 130 to 150 people use the space per hour for that period. Currently, Servus Place has around 7,500 annual and monthly members, with another 2,500 day-pass members who regularly using the facilities.
“The lack of space and opportunities is restricting our membership numbers,” said Ballash. “It will allow more residents of St. Albert access to the facility.”
General manager of community and protective services Chris Jardine said the review was required after membership and day-use numbers grew larger than planned, leading to the current crunch during peak times.
The 12,000-sq.-ft. fitness area was designed with the potential for growth in mind, Jardine added, after the city observed numerous expansions at the TransAlta Tri Leisure Centre in Spruce Grove. However, he concedes the city did not anticipate the number of users increasing to the degree it has.
“Your anticipation and research going in is that you expect to have a certain number of people within a set amount of time … hindsight is 20/20.”
Jardine said the review was originally set to happen in 2009, but was bumped by other recommendations made in the 2007 Servus Place operational review. The fitness centre expansion is listed as a $5.5-million project in the 10-year capital plan, though no dollars are attached. Jardine said that figure is not an indication of the final cost of the project.
The initial fitness plan, he said, would address how to accommodate more users by examining the fitness centre and other nearby space. From there, the consultants would look at how and where to expand the fitness centre as part of a 10-year plan.
Although the fitness centre would eventually need an expansion, Jardine concedes convincing the public to invest more into Servus Place will take time. However, he believes the expansion will serve the whole community and prove a worthwhile investment.
“Any type of significant investment into Servus Place will be a tough pill to swallow,” he said. “That fitness area is our best revenue generator … If we don’t address congestion, then people may take their money elsewhere.”
Servus Place opened in fall 2006 at a cost of $43.8 million.
