Any returning students living in Piano Row this semester likely noticed some changes, most notably the use of an entirely new entrance to the residence hall. This is due to the new fitness center that will officially open Monday morning.

When and where is the new Fitness Center being built?

The planning stages of the new fitness center have been in the works since before the pandemic, said Ronald Smithers, the associate athletics director for Sports Performance and the Fitness Center at Emerson. 

Talks about the new fitness center in the former Piano Row lobby began for multiple reasons, including an increase in popularity, accessibility, and overall improvements on the previous gym. 

What improvements will the new center offer?

The new fitness center will be larger than the current gym at 52 Summer St. coming in at over 13,000 square feet rather than the previous 9,000 square feet, according to Duncan Pollock, the associate vice president of facilities and on campus services. The fitness center will be two floors. The Piano Row gym will have equipment at the street entrance, with more machines on the lower floor, unlike the previous fitness center having an entrance that led to an elevator taking students to the 3rd and 4th floors of the building. 

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The new fitness center will be bigger than the old location in more ways than just size, though. More weights will give the new fitness center in Piano Row the ability to allow more people to work out at a time. A secondary weight room with dumbbells was installed to minimize wait time for those looking to use free weights, Pollock said.

In addition to the extra weight room, there will be an indoor sprinting area for those hoping to get into cardio. The sprinting area will be one long strip so that runners can get a good short-distance workout in as a part of their routine. A whole new set of Life Fitness workout machines will also be installed rather than repurposing the machines in the old gym. 

What will happen to the old fitness center?

Emerson College will not be recycling any of the old equipment being used in the 52 Summer St. building, Smithers said. In fact, the old gym is set to close immediately after the new fitness center opens, as the college never had ownership, but rather leased the property the old gym resided in. 

‘It’s going to be awesome’

The new improvements, along with the gym’s convenient location, will draw more people to use the Piano Row gym compared to the old one, Pollack said.

“Everybody that is at Emerson now expects to have to make the walk to 52 Summer St.,” Pollock said. Now that the gym is on campus, sidewalk traffic is expected to increase, he added.

“I’m excited to not have to walk four blocks just to work out,” said Cameron Brown, a senior theater and performance major, and frequent attendee of the old fitness center.

Na’lea Lydia Curiel, a cross country runner for Emerson, never used the old gym because of the walk but plans to go to the new gym.

The college is prepared to take on the expected increase in attendance to its fitness center, especially those who are attending the gym for the first time. Fitness center staff have degrees in exercise science and will continue to offer guidance for those who are newer to the concept of weight training.   

“Our staff will be there to show people how to use the equipment properly,” Smithers said.

Smithers hopes that the change in location will help more people be able to access the gym facilities and enjoy the fitness opportunities Emerson has to offer.

“It’s going to be awesome,” Smithers said.