Editor:
Your March 10 article “Stop-work order delays fitness equipment move” suggests all is well with Fitness New West programs and their attendance levels, after decades-long participants were shuffled off to smaller venues. Nothing could be further from the truth.
As of Feb. 13, when the city moved fitness classes to sites such as Century House, Centennial Lodge and the River Room at the Centennial Community Centre, attendance at these programs has plummeted. This is not surprising given the new venues. One observer noted vacuum cleaners and other janitorial items stored against the walls in these “workout” spaces during classes.
As well, there is no sound system, only a boom box. It is the equivalent of checking into a hotel and being offered the storage closet, rather than a well-equipped hotel room. One only needs to watch the hilarious movie “Best in Show” with Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara to witness the more comedic side of that experience. But, unfortunately, this is no laughing matter.
Fitness New West attendance levels have fallen through the floor since the recent venue changes. It is indeed ironic that the same thing may literally happen to heavy gym equipment being moved into Centennial’s gymnasium.
The ill-advised plan of loading the Canada Games gym set-up onto the Centennial gymnasium floor is being undertaken now at a growing cost to taxpayers, with city staff waiting in the wings, structural engineering consultants meeting, and the hired contractor sitting idle with a WorkSafeBC stop work order.
Is it truly possible that our city thinks it’s a worthwhile spend of our tax dollars to reinforce the floor when the demolition of the outdated Centennial Community Centre is looming?
Our Fitness New West programs have earned the right through their success over the last 38 years to maintain and continue to grow their attendance numbers by operating out of a centralized hub at the Centennial Community Centre gymnasium – at least until it is no longer standing.
So far, those in charge of our city’s recreation facilities and services have ignored hundreds of petition signatures; countless health and wellness arguments made by experts and community-users alike; the concern of female fitness users who feel that a clear gender-bias is being shown in favour of the male-dominated gym equipment experience at Canada Games; and the proven dismantling (in terms of attendance) of an incredibly successful fitness program that is the envy of many other Lower Mainland communities.
Dean Gibson, our city’s director of parks and recreation, admitted in the December 1, 2021 article “Petition circulating to keep Fitness New West at Centennial Community Centre” that “he didn’t have attendance numbers for Fitness New West and the fitness areas at Canada Games Pool when he spoke to the Record after a Nov. 29 Council workshop.”
Yet the decision had already been finalized. I wonder whether those attendance numbers have been investigated by our city decision-makers more recently? My feeling is that they have not.
Recent evidence suggests that the city’s plan does not make sense both practically or economically. If the city chooses to ignore community feedback, they should at least consider the financial repercussions of their plan and demonstrate some accountability. Substantial revenue from Fitness New West classes has been forfeited.
As well, the taxpayer-funded cost of re-engineering Centennial’s gymnasium floor to provide a temporary fix is throwing good money after bad. If not storage in the interim, then find an alternative location for the Canada Games workout equipment and its users and bring Fitness New West and other programs home to live out their final days until it’s time to move into the new facility.
Wendy Sider, New Westminster
