Kennesaw State University Expands Student Fitness Opportunities

The Betty L. Siegel Student Recreation and Activities Center at Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Georgia, will more than triple the fitness and recreation space available to students.

Construction on the $38.7 million, 176,000-square-foot project began in 2013 and is close to completion, according to the university's website, but university officials have yet to announce when the facility will be open to the university’s 32,000 students. It will replace a 55,000-square-foot facility that opened in 1967.

The center, named for the woman who served as Kennesaw State’s president from 1981 to 2006, will have an indoor competition swimming pool and an outdoor leisure swimming pool.

Other parts of the center include one outdoor and four indoor basketball courts; a multi-activity court large enough to play indoor soccer; eight tennis courts; a weight and fitness area; a rock climbing wall; an indoor track, and sand volleyball and racquetball courts.

University officials planned the center with the aim of receiving a LEED silver rating for energy-saving, sustainable design and construction strategies. Those elements include 35 percent less water usage compared with similar facilities; use of adhesives and paints with low VOC emissions; and a computerized energy management system to minimize its carbon footprint. Wood from oak trees removed from the construction site were used for counter tops and other pieces of furniture throughout the facility.