School District 73 has been awarded $17,500 for renovation of the Clearwater Secondary School gymnasium.
The money is a Schools Community Connections grant from the BC School Trustees Association and Union of BC Municipalities.
The money will be used primarily to upgrade the school’s weight room, as proposed by CSS principal Darren Coates.
A new audio video system would be available for exercise and Zumba classes, as well as for other school uses. New rubberized flooring would reduce maintenance and lessen the chances of injury. New cardio equipment would include an exercise bike, rower and elliptical, while new strength equipment would be safer and have a wider range of weights and movements.
The upgraded weight room would not be in competition with established commercial exercise businesses, Coates said during a presentation on the project to District of Clearwater council a few weeks ago.
It would only be available to the public during limited hours and would serve to introduce people to regular physical training. If they then want to get serious, they would go to the commercial establishments, he said.
Up to $12,500 was available per school district plus another $5,000 could be awarded under special circumstances, Coates said during his presentation.
As far as he was aware, no other school in School District 73 was applying for a SCC grant, and it appears he was successful in getting the full amount for the district plus the additional special grant.