Athletics only accounts for 16 percent of Walter Fieldhouse usage
Only 16 percent of the people who have used the Walter Fieldhouse so far this year were Ohio University student athletes.
But Ohio’s athletic teams, including football, have six hours every weekday to use the field, from noon to 6 p.m.
From Sept. 1 through Oct. 21, the fieldhouse had 9,539 users, according to numbers from Campus Recreation.
Athletics has accounted for a significant amount of users — 1,520 in that time — but ROTC has used the facility more, with 3,159 users or 33 percent of the total amount of users since the beginning of September.
Clubs and intramural sports make up 32 percent of total usage with 3,017 users since Sept. 1.
Some classes, such as physical education classes, have taken advantage of the fieldhouse already this semester. Those classes accounted for 174 users so far.
Matt Barte, a fifth year senior studying communication sciences and disorders, said his soccer classes used the facility a few weeks ago.
“It’s like walking on a carpet,” he said. “It’s super nice.”
Barte hasn’t returned to the facility on his own, but said he would like to visit during some of the open recreation times.
The fieldhouse has open recreation hours every day and the fieldhouse employs about 30 student workers, said Mark Ferguson, executive director of Campus Recreation.
The fieldhouse has limited open hours during the week, but it is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturdays, and from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sundays.
Ryan Lombardi, vice president for Student Affairs, said the building isn’t sitting empty during the open recreation times, but that whatever activity is going on can accommodate others, such as when ROTC is using the facility.
The facility can also be rented out for special events, Lombardi said. There have been 395 users for rentals. Non-university groups pay $200 per hour; university groups pay $100 per hour to rent, according to the website.
“It’s being used, there’s no question about that,” Lombardi said.
However, it is unknown how many single students who aren’t a part of a group have used the facility. Those students have been included with the academic and recreation numbers, Ferguson said.
“As the weather changes and students become more aware of the hours and availability and understand that the Fieldhouse is open for more than athletics, that usage is only increasing,” Ferguson said.
@MariaDeVito13
md781510@ohio.edu
