NIC considers student recreation center

North Idaho College students could someday take a run in the winter without braving slippery, snow-covered roads, pump iron between classes or practice yoga after school.

The Associated Students of North Idaho College have hired a consultant to look at building a student recreation center on the Coeur d’Alene campus.

Vice President for Student Services Bruce Gifford said student fees were used to fund the $20,000 study by Brailsford & Dunlavey, facilities planners from Washington, D.C. The company was involved in student recreation centers at several colleges and universities including Washington State and the University of Idaho.

“They’re going to look at a number of things,” Gifford said. “What the needs are, what students would like to see in the center and what kind of costs would be associated with building the facility.”

The consultants also will evaluate possible sites for the center, develop a conceptual design and help ASNIC poll students, who ultimately would fund the building through student fees.

The idea of a student recreation center has been discussed for quite a while, Gifford said, but the issue was brought to the front burner by last year’s student government. This spring, ASNIC set aside money from its budget to hire the consultant.

Gifford said ASNIC chose to hire the D.C. firm because they had worked on projects at nearby colleges, including the UI Student Recreation Center that was built in 2002. The 10,000-square-foot center includes two full-size gyms, an indoor running track, locker rooms with saunas, weight training and fitness equipment, classrooms and a climbing center.

Linda Michal, head of NIC’s Student Health Services, served on an NIC recreation center committee. The group discussed having exercise and weight equipment, space for yoga and dance classes and “pie in the sky” ideas like an indoor running track or a swimming pool.

“The biggest challenge is going to be cost,” Michal said. “It just comes down to what can we really afford and what’s reasonable?”

The NIC project is still in the infant stages, Gifford said. No timeline has been established and no potential locations have been announced – though Gifford said it would be on campus.

“I’m sure the students would love to see it as soon as they could,” Gifford said.

According to the UI Web site, students pay for membership in the UI center through fees paid with tuition. Student spouses, alumni, faculty and others can pay to use the facility. Members of the community also can pay for day passes.

Gifford said it hasn’t been determined whether the NIC facility would be restricted to students and NIC employees, or open to the community. He said the college plans to visit with local business owners.

“We don’t want to be in any situation where we’re competing with private-sector folks,” Gifford said. “We need to sit down and talk to them about any concerns.”

Students have expressed an interest in having the opportunity for sports and fitness activities at NIC, Gifford said. Having a center of their own would be an added convenience for students, he said.

“Right now, they have to go off campus if they want to do it,” he said. “There are a number of things to their benefit if it’s located close to class and other buildings.”

Having a facility on campus might help both students and employees live a healthier lifestyle, Michal said.

“It would be so easy to get to and utilize,” she said. “It could overall improve peoples’ probability of increasing their health by doing more exercising.”