Space Efficiency Issues at the Texas Tech Recreational Center



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|Space Efficiency Issues at the Texas Tech Recreational Center |

|Written for: The Texas Tech Student Government Association |

|Texas Tech Undergraduates: Jesse Finley, Sean Craus, Mark Moffett, and Brandon Perez |

|12/3/2009 |

Contents

Abstract 2

Background 2

How Things Are 2

Introduction 3

The Problem 3

Safety Hazards of Overcrowding 3

Health Concerns 3

Psychological Affects 4

Solutions 4

Alternative Class Options 4

Use of empty space 4

Scheduling of Classes 5

How to Implement Solutions 5

Alternative Class Options 5

Use of Empty Space 6

Scheduling of Classes 6

How to See if These Changes are Needed 6

Student Surveys 6

Occupancy Count 6

Occupancy Count Record Sheet 7

Other Photos 9

Conclusion 10

Abstract

The Texas Tech Recreational Center has faced overcrowding in the free weights room consistently over the past few years. This problem affects the health of the Texas Tech students in a negative way. Our proposal highlights the negative effects of the overcrowded weight room, and gives simple solution to help fix the problem. We offer suggestions such as, adding new fitness classes targeted toward men to direct the crowd away from the weights. Also, we think that examining the space that the Rec has and using space more efficiently will minimize the overcrowding problem. Our report will help you, the S.G.A. understand this problem better, and give suggestions on how you can present this problem to the Rec. Center.

Background

How Things Are

Going to the gym and getting a strong workout is a way to get healthy, relieve stress, and tone up the body. What if the gym wasn’t a place where you could exercise? The very purpose of the gym would be hindered. This is an embellished example of how the Texas Tech Recreational Facility is so overcrowded working out becomes a hassle. The free weights room in the Rec. has become so overcrowded that people often choose not to come. At almost every station there is a line of people waiting to use the equipment. I’m sure that you have experience this frustration recently if you have used the gym. Even walking around in the gym is elbow to elbow. With limited space to complete workouts people have to limit their exercise routines. Unfortunately, I have heard many of my peer students have bought non-affiliated Texas Tech gym memberships due to this increasing problem of overcrowding.

Comparison of Recreational Centers

The Texas Tech Recreational Center is 242,000 square feet of space. The student body is around 28,500 students. Compared to other University’s Recreational Facilities size ours seems to be somewhat appropriate for our school. Texas A&M has a Rec. that is 400,000 square feet, but they have 36,500 students. Also, University of Texas has a bigger Rec. with 500,000 square feet, but then again they have more students at 49,700 students. Each school’s rec. facility has enough space for the students to do what they need to.

Introduction

One of the main areas used by students would be the recreational center. This area provides the student with a place to engage in sport activities and to work out. A main part of the center would be the weight lifting room. Our proposal addresses a few problems that occur with this free weight area. First we will discuss the way things are at the Rec Center during current day, and what kind of goals the school wishes to reach. There are four main problems that we would like to cover in our proposal. These would be overcrowding, health concerns, psychological concerns and overall size issues. Potential solutions will be discussed at the end of the proposal for you as the SGA to pass on. With the help of this proposal it should not be too difficult to formulate a proposal of your own to achieve possible changes.

The Problem

Safety Hazards of Overcrowding

Many of the complaints about the Rec Center are about overcrowding. Many students do not work out because they are frustrated because they are not able to use the equipment that they want. There are also safety hazards associated with overcrowding. Exceeding maximum occupancy can result in lives being lost if there is an emergency. When a fire occurs in a crowded place, people will run to the exits at once, resulting in a bottleneck. The bottleneck at the exits will cause everyone to exit the building at a slower rate, which could endanger lives. The person to contact about this information will be the Lubbock County Fire Marshal, Mike Kemp. His office is at 1515 East Ursuline Street in Lubbock. His phone number is (806) 775-2646. He will be able to determine maximum occupancy through the square footage of the area, including the obstacles that will be in the way. Also considered is the number and ease of access of the exits in the area.

Health Concerns

There are a few problems that are health related to the overcrowding in the Rec center. According to Dr. Zussman “about 80 percent of all infectious diseases are transmitted by both direct and indirect contact.” This means that anywhere that places where large amounts of people gather will be breeding grounds for disease. One of the major infections that will be caught from a workout facility is staph. When you have such a large amount of people in one area you are not able to keep up with who cleans up after themselves and who doesn’t. Another concern with a small area being overcrowded would be swine flu. Swine Flu is the new brand of flu that is posing a scare to the United States. This disease is spread by close contact to other people who already are sick with it. Many people may choose to believe that they do not have swine flu or may be not sick enough yet to realize it. These are two situations in which people carrying swine flu may still head to the Rec to work out. This would be a problem in almost any work out facility. With the overcrowding that occurs in the Rec though we expose a larger number of people for the disease to take hold. My suggestions for you would be to consult doctors to gather more substantial information regarding this subject. As a school it should be a top priority to find ways to reduce the chance of a sickness.

Psychological Affects

As you may have experience before being in an overcrowded environment can be very frustrating. The Recreational Center is a place that is meant to enhance a person’s health (mentally and physically). To have either of these two hindered would be counterproductive. Unfortunately, sometimes the free weights room overcrowding does create a negative environment for Tech students. In a social situation where there is an abundant of people, and unfamiliarity between people anxiety can be produced. Anxiety is an uncomfortable negative feeling that flourishes self-doubt, fear, and jittery feelings. If anxiety is internalized it creates a mess of psychological problems, including depression.

Solutions

Alternative Class Options

One of the main attractions at the Rec Center would be the Raider X classes that students can participate in. There is a wide selection of classes that work out enthusiasts can participate in from abs classes to spinning. This could be a good area for a solution to the overcrowding in the free weights area. Many of the classes that are offered at the Rec Center appeal to a neutral or female population (see picture below). The classes focus on endurance, flexibility, or toning of muscles. The Rec Center could offer more classes that aim at things that men tend to look for while working out. This would mean offering classes that work on muscle strength. A few ideas of classes that could be offered would be P90x, and the Spartan challenge. These kinds of classes would draw a large interest in the male population. This would mean that the classes would draw not just the girls but also the guys away from the free weight area. There are many other types of classes that you could suggest the Rec Center look into. These classes would also be helpful since the Rec Center would be able to charge the class fee and make money off of these new additions.

[pic](class opportunities for women only)

Use of empty space

The cause of this overcrowding is that there are too many people for the amount of space that is allotted to the free weight area. A possible solution for this would be locating areas that could be converted to extra free weight areas (see figure below). One of these areas could be the upstairs area that is used for couches and ping pong tables. This is a large space that could be put to better use then what it is for right now. At any given time during the day the upstairs area is lacking in people. This is probably because a couch area is not what people go to the Rec Center for; people go to the Rec Center to work out and not to relax on a couch. There is also a small area down by the rock wall that is also empty most of the time. A small amount of weight lifting equipment could be placed in these spaces. This would direct some of the people out of the current free weight area in to this new area.

[pic] [pic]

(empty areas in the Rec Center during peak hours)

Scheduling of Classes

Texas Tech offers many personal fitness and wellness classes at the recreational center. These classes can range from walking to Tai Chi. Many of these classes involve weight training as one of the course requirements. These types of classes are scheduled throughout the entire day including the hours when the Rec Center is most crowded. A solution for the crowding of the Rec Center could be to schedule classes that require weight training at hours when the Rec Center is empty. Such classes would be weight lifting, diet and exercise and others. If these classes were rescheduled then it would take a small portion of the free weight room crowd and move them to other times.

How to Implement Solutions

Alternative Class Options

Most of the classes that are offered by the Rec Center are geared mostly toward women. This is not the main group that is crowding the free weight room. There are class types that could really help direct some of this crowd away from the weight room into other areas. Here are a few steps that you could take to help implement this solution.

• Survey the student population which participates in classes.

• Research classes that would appeal to men such as P90X.

• Locate areas that would be available to hold new classes.

Use of Empty Space

There are many spaces in the Rec Center that could be utilized more efficiently. These areas could be used as alternative lifting areas to help divide the number of people in one room. Here are three steps that would put you on track to implementing this idea.

• Measure square footage of the empty spaces.

• Research size, type and price of equipment for new spaces.

• Inform students of new areas to start redirection of crowd.

Scheduling of Classes

Many classes offered by Texas Tech are taken at the Rec center. These classes need to utilize the free weight room which adds to the overcrowding. Reorganizing the schedule to avoid the crowded times could help with the problem. Here are some ideas to start this process.

• Research which classes through Tech are popular.

• Research peak hours for the free weight room.

• Rewrite the class schedule so weight lifting classes are during down times

How to See if These Changes are Needed

Student Surveys

One of the easiest and most efficient ways to get a large group of people’s opinions is through surveys. To get the best results from a survey in this situation would be to create one from scratch. It isn’t very hard to do, and could provide a lot of insight into the impact of this problem. A few examples of questions you can ask in the survey are, “How difficult is it for you to use equipment due to overcrowding?” or “Would you attend workout classes for men?” The answers to these questions should help you determine how severe this problem is, and if people would be willing to participate in changes, such as attending work out classes. If there is any question of the validity of the survey you create then you could ask one of the psychology professors to review it for you.

Occupancy Count

It is important to know how many people are in the free weights room, and how many people should be in there at given points in time. The recreational center only counts people as they first go into the Rec., but do not count them as they go into the free weights room. No one knows if the occupancy for that room is over a safe capacity. There are ways to know at what points during the day that the free weights room is at a high person count. Since there are usually two Rec. employees in the free weights room they could alternate taking counts at the entrance. A counter is an inexpensive tool that allows for people to be counted as they go in and out of the free weights room. The purpose is to see at what points in the day that that room is the most crowded. So, we can schedule masculine workout classes during that time to direct traffic flow away.

Occupancy Count Record Sheet

The main purpose of the Record sheet is to discover what times during the day the F.W.R. is overcrowded. The Rec. employees could fill out the Record sheet every hour for one month. The usual workout last around 45-60 minutes so the hour time interval should account for reliable changes for people starting new workouts, and those that finish them. The month long recording process will be thorough enough to eliminate workout trends, and gain enough data to make logical decisions regarding this proposal. An example Record Sheet is on the following page.

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Other Photos

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(classrooms on the second floor that can be used for equipment or workouts)

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(photos of the upstairs lounge)

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(The soccer court can also be used as another exercise class through the curtain as a partition.)

Conclusion

The Next Step

After reviewing our proposal, it our hope that the SGA will take the next step in this project. Our group understands that it is not in the SGA’s power to approve of our proposal’s potential solutions regarding the overcrowded free weight room at the Texas Tech Recreation Center. However there is something the SGA can do in order to get our proposal set into motion. We have determined that the person required to approve our ideas is Peewee Roberson. Here is Peewee’s contact information.

|Peewee Roberson, Director of Recreational Facilities |

|Phone: 806-742-3351 |

|Email: peewee.roberson@ttu.edu |

As Director of Recreational Facilities, Mr. Roberson is the clear choice for the SGA to present our proposal to.

Things the SGA can do for our idea.

As students, it is your duty to help solve any problems that the student body as a whole feels is out of place and needs fixing. It is our belief then, that the SGA can do a couple of select things to increase the effectiveness of our proposal.

Firstly, the SGA needs student support. Therefore we suggest that the SGA conduct a full student survey concerning the recreation center and its overcrowded free weight room. We are confident that there will be more than enough voice in your survey that can speak to Mr. Roberson louder than any proposal ever could.

Secondly, but most importantly the SGA can be proactive with our proposal idea in one major way. Money. Mr. Roberson’s primary concern with our proposal will in some way revolve around funding for the idea. The easiest way for the SGA to get around this would be to simply ask Mr. Roberson the current status of available funds for projects such as ours. Some things to consider and questions to ask Mr. Roberson should include:

• Where will the money come from?

• Is there money available in the current budget to fund this idea?

o If not, is fundraising a potential solution?

• Private Contributions?

As students, we lack the time, means, and capacity to conduct such detailed research. However, the SGA is more than capable to complete these tasks for us. It is our hope that the SGA deems fit to carry out our requests to Peewee Roberson. Thank you for your time and contributions to the Texas Tech student body.

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