Local residents are invited to lace up their sneakers — and maybe even dig out the leg warmers — for a ribbon-cutting and workout party at 6 p.m. Monday celebrating the new outdoor fitness area at Philomath City Park.
Mayor Christopher McMorran is expected to make an appearance in throwback workout gear, adding a festive touch to what organizers are billing as a fun, community-oriented evening.
According to information shared at a park board meeting last fall, the outdoor fitness area was to feature eight exercise stations — a cardio walker, balance board, body curl, balance beam, sit-ups, lat pull-down, trapeze rack and knee lift — situated across the road from the skatepark and main playground.
Funding for the project — $50,000 set aside in the city’s capital improvement plan — came from park system development charges, the one-time fees collected from new development to support park expansion and improvements. Plans called for the installation to be handled in-house by public works employees.
The effort traces its origins to the removal of aging equipment in another section of the park that had outlived its usefulness.
Input from the community helped shape which equipment was selected. Park Advisory Board Chair Larry Sleeman and McMorran gathered feedback from more than 100 community members at the Philomath Farmers’ Market last summer, asking which exercise stations residents most wanted to see installed.
The public is encouraged to bring friends and come ready to try out the new equipment.