Center feeds ‘spirit and soul’

Published 7:26 am Thursday, January 12, 2012

Note: The following is being re-posted to correct an error regarding an Alabama Sports Festival Foundation event held in 2011 at the Gardendale Civic Center.

An exclusive, men-only club meets most mornings at the Gardendale Civic Center.

When they meet, civic center event manager Linda Harris places a sign near them that states, “In Session.”

The men are mostly retirees who take pleasure in telling stories and drinking coffee as much, if not more, than working out at the civic center’s gym.

“They’re a great group of guys,” said Harris. “They love to laugh and have a good time.”

One of the men, Joe Perkins, said last week that he’s made the best New Year’s resolution ever: To “gain weight, drink coffee and I’m not working out.”

Another of the group, Scott Gant, said he and his buddies do indeed get some exercise there.

“We work out. We all have our different workouts, but we mainly come for Dennis’ coffee,” he said. That would be Dennis Love, a civic center employee who keeps the coffee flowing in the mornings.

Plenty of folks show up at the civic center to work out, or to hang out at the seemingly endless events held at the facility.

The civic center is bursting with activity seven days a week. With its meeting space and workout facilities, the center sees hundreds, if not thousands, of visitors every week.

On the athletics side, the center’s gym boasts 4,000 members. The gym is open every day.

“That’s one of the reasons we’re so popular, is because of the hours,” said civic center director John Brigham.

He said pricing is another reason. For Gardendale residents, a gym membership at the civic center is $180 a year for individuals and $280 a year for families. Non-residents can join for $250 a year for individuals and $330 for families.

“When the economy is bad, our membership goes up,” Brigham said. “We are family-friendly. We provide good, clean fun and entertainment.”

Besides the cardio room and two weight rooms, the center has a racquetball court, basketball court, and indoor and outdoor walking tracks.

About 47 basketball teams are signed up to play at the gym and more than 1,600 people paid to participate in group fitness lessons in December, according to Brigham.

The center provides about 45 fitness classes every week and contracts with four fitness trainers.  

Six full-time and 12 part-time employees keep the center going.

Brigham describes the civic center as a “three-in-one” facility, providing a place for group fitness, recreation and meetings.

According to Harris, the center stays booked year-round from meetings as small and informal as the group of men who drink coffee together in the mornings, to city and state functions.

In 2011, the center hosted the Alabama Sports Festival Foundation’s Taekwondo event as part of the State Games, with more than 500 people in attendance, and a Retirement Systems of Alabama meeting.

Harris said the facility also hosts weddings and many weekly, monthly and bimonthly meetings including the Gardendale Rotary Club, Gardendale Chamber of Commerce luncheons, garden clubs and numerous others.

The exhibition hall, which rents for $1,200 a day, is used at least twice a month for events such as concerts, banquets, elections, large meetings and other functions.

“The building is utilized,” Brigham said.

Harris said the center turns down quite a few functions due to lack of space because the facility stays booked.

One group that is never over-booked, however, is the group of men that meets at the center every morning. Sometimes all seven of the group is there; other days only two or three show up.

“It’s not really organized. Some will team up to work out and then we all meet in the hallway,” said Lonnie Shaffer, who joins the group most mornings. “We are spirit and soul too, so we come here to work out our social skills.”

— Danielle Pelkey contributed to this story