Oquirrh Fitness Center seeks $12M upgrade

Kearns (Salt Lake Tribune) » Karla Garcia cannot find a treadmill at 8 in the morning.

The Kearns Oquirrh Park Fitness Center is so packed at that hour that, even with a 35-minute limit on the equipment, Garcia must put her name on a waiting list.

So the Kearns woman delays her exercise routine until later in the day -- she strolled in at noon Tuesday -- to avoid the crowds that have come to clog this popular west-side fitness center.

But, someday, Garcia might not have to postpone her workouts.

This summer, the fitness center will propose to voters in the Oquirrh Recreation and Parks District a $12 million bond that could double the size of that workout room. The money also could help build an indoor walking track, cover the Olympic-size pool for wintertime swimming and add a lazy river and water slide to the center's outdoor water park.

"We are here to serve the community," Executive Director Brent Sheets said. "We have had an overwhelming number of people saying we need to improve the services we are providing."

But those upgrades will come at a cost.

Right now, residents within the rec district -- which includes portions of Kearns Township, Taylorsville, West Valley City and West Jordan -- pay about $24 a year on a $175,000 home. That levy is set to expire by the end of 2011.

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