The Beverly J. Warren Student Recreation and Wellness Center turned 20 years old this past April. A building refresh project is in order to give it a new and updated look.

The remodeling has already begun, but won’t fully be finished until at least a year or two, according to Marketing Coordinator Jim Kraus. 

“We wanted to give the rec center more of a look and feel of Kent State,” Kraus said. “We painted the ceilings and walls gold and changed the carpeting to give it a more newer feeling.” 

Concerns about how the updates will intervene with students have already been raised. Nicole Miller, biology major, said even with the little changes they have made has put some of her workouts to a halt. 

“They blocked off the circuit area for a couple of days which is where I spend most of my workout at,” Miller said. “I’m curious to see how they will do the main weight areas without blocking off a lot of equipment.” 

The new building refresh project plans to include new equipment in the weight and circuit areas. As well as new fitness programs, including new Group X classes, are in the talks for students to take advantage of. 

According to James Kraus, they plan to move equipment over to the hallways so that students can still get to the machines. 

“We are going to try to keep the impacts as minimal as possible,” Kraus said. “Hopefully just relocate everything, and maybe bring in some new equipment when everything is all said and done.”  

Contact Sarah Arnold at [email protected].