By Lyonel Doherty
The Oliver Parks and Recreation Society has approved the reallocation of funds to hire a weight room attendant for the remainder of 2017.
Manager of Recreation Carol Sheridan made the recommendation Monday, saying the new weight room needs to be supervised in the evenings.
Currently, members use a fob to gain entry, but Sheridan said the problem is some members are opening the door to allow non-paying users into the facility. She noted they receive daily reports about this situation.
“It’s a loss of revenue and it’s not fair to paying members,” Sheridan said.
She noted the weight room expansion has proved to be a major success factor in increasing the number of members by 30 per cent. It has also changed the demographic from mostly seniors to equal numbers of seniors and adults, she pointed out.
Sheridan said they plan to add new equipment to the facility, so it would be ideal to increase supervision to help prevent vandalism and theft.
She noted that a weight room attendant would greet each person at the door to confirm his or her membership. The attendant would deny access to non-members, clean the facility, and ensure all patrons our out by 9:30 pm.
Candidates with certification in fitness training would be given preference.
Sheridan said the position would cost the Society between $8,640 and $13,440 over the next six months.
