The grand opening celebration begins at 4 p.m. and is free and open to the public. The program will include CSU Stanislaus men’s and women’s soccer matches against UC San Diego starting at 4:30 p.m., tours of the fitness center, food, face painting, and more.
Located at the corner of Geer Road and Christoffersen Parkway, the 24-acre Complex includes a fitness center, 2,300-seat lighted soccer stadium, the Al Brenda all-weather track, and lighted intramural sports fields.
“The Student Recreation Complex will be a great addition to our campus,” CSU Stanislaus President Ham Shirvani said. “I am really proud of our students for the vision and leadership they demonstrated in seeing this student-funded project through to completion.”
Shirvani continued, “The Complex will not only enhance our recreation and athletic programs, but it will also be a place where students can work on their personal wellness and conditioning.”
Coming to CSU Stanislaus as the new Student Recreation Complex Director is Dan Houlden. He brings extensive experience from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis where he was director for 14 1/2 years. He also served as Director of Student Life there for the past three years.
The Complex stands out as a showpiece in the northeast corner of campus. The landmark of the Complex is the 18,500-square-foot Student Fitness Center which is architecturally impressive with its distinctive tower designed by Thomas Gordon Smith, a recognized international leader in contemporary developments of classical architecture. The Fitness Center, which opened to students on the first day of fall semester classes September 9, includes a workout room with new equipment, a multi-purpose gymnasium equipped with a wall scoreboard, group exercise aerobics studio, and combined restroom-shower rooms.
The facility is being financed by student fees that CSU Stanislaus students overwhelmingly approved in a May 2006 vote.
“The grand opening of the Student Recreation Complex brings the campus a great opportunity for expansion and growth from the perspective of the University, the community, and students,” said Diana Heredia, Associated Students Inc. President. “Students have been anticipating the opening for a year now, and given the recent fall of our budget, the complex will be a great location for our University and the community to come together.”