LOCATION:
Marshalltown, Iowa

DETAILS:
New 122,232 square foot fitness and recreation facility

SERVICES:
Architecture
Mechanical Engineering
Planning

When the Marshalltown Community YMCA received a generous gift of $28 million from Virginia Horne Henry, members embraced the opportunity to create a joint YMCA/YWCA. The state-of-the-art facility would be the first of its kind, and its design presented complex challenges in terms of identifying shared spaces and differentiating among various programs. Each step of the planning process had to consider a 60-acre campus—not just a stand-alone facility.

Input from stakeholders, members of end-user groups, and community members was crucial to our TSP team’s effort. Together, we outlined needs and balanced a wish list against resources. As a result, the final product successfully addressed the community’s goals for a wide demographic, from youth and teens to parents and seniors.
In addition to typical wellness center features such as gymnasiums and an eight-lane, 25-yard lap pool, the project includes several forward-thinking amenities—

• Themed water park with slides, zero-depth-entry pool, and children’s play area
• Competition pool that allows one portion to be used for events while the balance remains open for patrons
• Electronic “FitLinxx” system throughout, to record daily workout journals so personal trainers can review the workout habits of clients enrolled in the program
• Multiple family changing rooms
• Private toilet and shower rooms
• Private showers in all locker rooms
• Saunas and a steam room in both the men’s and women’s locker rooms—which adjoin a common massage suite staffed by facility employees
• Medical alert system throughout the facility
• Running track that offers views to all major areas in a single 1/10-mile lap