When it opened 20 years ago this week, BU’s Fitness & Recreation Center (FitRec) transformed life on campus. Part of BU’s John Hancock Student Village, built on the site of the old Commonwealth National Guard Armory, the gleaming 270,000-square-foot facility was planned to augment the aging Case Gym and provide new cutting-edge amenities.
The Commonwealth Armory (left), a home to a Massachusetts Army National Guard, was built in 1914-15 and torn down in 2002 (center) to make room for Boston University’s Fitness & Recreation Center (right), which opened in April 2005.
Constructed at a cost of $97 million, the center boasts two swimming pools (a competition pool and a recreation pool with a 100-foot-long “lazy river”), a four-court gym, an eight-lane jogging track, and a 30-foot climbing wall in the center of the two-story rotunda. There are also numerous racquetball and squash courts, multipurpose rooms, and a dance theater.
To celebrate the big anniversary, FitRec is hosting a weeklong celebration Monday, March 24, through Saturday, March 29, that includes special events, giveaways, and exclusive programs. On tap: free climbing rentals, restorative yoga and cardiovascular workouts, and a cardio dance class. In addition, the center will offer free FitPasses all week that allow admission to dozens of classes. (Participants must register in advance; registration opens two hours prior to the start of the class.)
“The goal of our weeklong celebration of FitRec’s 20th anniversary is to give back to the community that has embraced us over the last two decades,” says Shaun Bossio (MET’12), Physical Education, Recreation & Dance (PERD) director of finance and administration. “Each student, faculty, staff, alum, and community member over this period has helped us evolve from a small recreation department into a leader in providing wellness opportunities to the BU and greater Boston populations. We are incredibly grateful to all of our patrons and look forward to the opportunity to celebrate how far we’ve all come together.”
FitRec features several basketball and squash courts along with a 30-foot climbing wall, designed to accommodate climbers of all ages and ability levels. Photos by Jackie Ricciardi (from left), Nick Grace, and Adam Glanzman
To mark FitRec’s anniversary, we asked members of the BU community to share their favorite stories and talk about how it has enriched their lives.
The 10-lane-by-16-lane competition pool is home to BU’s varsity men’s and women’s swimming and diving program and can be switched from meters to yards by way of a movable bulkhead. Photo by Adam Glanzman
FitRec features 130 pieces of strength equipment. Photo by Nick Grace
Fencing is among the more than 500 classes offered at FitRec. Photo by Jackie Ricciardi
The dance program includes aerial, Pilates, and pole classes as well as technique classes focused on the joy of movement; it also offers Afro-Caribbean, ballroom, cardio jazz fun, and hip-hop classes. Photo by Nick Grace
The dumbbells and barbells on the first floor are the most popular pieces of equipment in the gym. Photo by Nick Grace
John O’Rourke
began his career as a reporter at The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour. He has worked as a producer at World Monitor, a coproduction of the Christian Science Monitor and the Discovery Channel, and NBC News, where he was a producer for several shows, including Now with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric, NBC Nightly News, and The Today Show. John has won many awards, including four Emmys, a George Foster Peabody Award, and five Edward R. Murrow Awards.
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Comments & Discussion
Boston University moderates comments to facilitate an informed, substantive, civil conversation. Abusive, profane, self-promotional, misleading, incoherent or off-topic comments will be rejected. Moderators are staffed during regular business hours (EST) and can only accept comments written in English. Statistics or facts must include a citation or a link to the citation.