THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 26, 1996 TAG: 9605240190
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 28 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JOHN-HENRY DOUCETTE, CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: 59 lines
Chesapeake General Hospital broke ground Thursday on a new fitness center in Western Branch that will bring 58 jobs to the city when it opens in late spring 1997.
The Western Branch Fitness Center will be two stories high and will occupy 44,000 square feet on the 4600 block of Taylor Road.
Chesapeake General hopes health-conscious residents of Suffolk, Portsmouth and Newport News as well as Chesapeake will keep in shape at the new facility.
Hospital president Donald S. Buckley said the $5.5 million center will be a place for fitness and health education.
``If someone has a heart attack, they're afraid to go back to a commercial fitness center because they aren't under medical supervision,'' said Buckley. ``At the Western Branch center. . . people will be able to work out under medical supervision.''
According to Buckley, a physical evaluation will be performed by qualified medical personnel when a new member joins the club. Buckley said, ``That appraisal will direct your course of activity. If a person is 30 pounds overweight, he's going to want to start off more slowly.''
As one of the first fitness centers in Hampton Roads affiliated with a hospital, the Western Branch Fitness Center will also provide a place for rehabilitation.
A six-lane, 25-yard swimming pool is large enough to allow lap swimmers and those performing water therapy to use it simultaneously.
There will be lots of fitness gear.
Basketball enthusiasts will be able to hoop it up in the multipurpose gymnasium.
There will be a large aerobics room with suspended wooden floors, cardiovascular gear and both circuit and free weights.
For runners there will be an indoor track, and those taking the low-impact route will have a whirlpool and a steam room at their disposal.
Parents who want to get healthy won't have to worry about keeping one eye on the weights and the other on junior. The center will have a child care room that opens into and outdoor play area.
Health education and other topics will be taught in the center's three classrooms, which feature demonstration kitchens.
Cardiopulmonary rehabilitation and physical therapy services will also be provided.
This is not Chesapeake General's first foray into providing a place for people to flex and sweat. Its Lifestyle Fitness Center, located near the hospital off Battlefield Boulevard, has been in operation since 1988 and is currently being refurbished.
``This new center will make a statement that the hospital and its subsidiary operations put an emphasis on wellness,'' said Buckley.
Norfolk contractor Virtexco Corp. will build the center, which was designed by Worley Associated, a Richmond architectural firm.
Buckley said a price structure for use of the new facility is not completed, but memberships should be available up to six months before the center opens. ILLUSTRATION: Drawing
Chesapeake General Hospital is building the Western Branch Fitness
Center. by CNB