Growing usership at Sarnia’s Strangway Center has prompted the city to extend operating hours.
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Language courses, fitness programs such as golf lessons, tai chi and yoga among other programs began being offered 4:30 pm to 8 pm Monday to Wednesday in September, on top of regular Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm programming hours, said city parks and recreation manager Krissy Glavin.
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It’s been going well so far, she said.
“We’ve seen some great registration numbers,” she said. “Some of the activities are in more of a drop-in structure, but they seem to be very well attended.”
The extended-hours pilot is expected to last into the spring, she said, noting staff hours were moved around at the center to accommodate the changes.
“We are also going to be recruiting for some part-time staffing hours to get some experience and some involvement in the center, to essentially ensure we have someone available if there’s questions,” Glavin said.
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Program instructors are generally not city staff, she said.
“The staff piece is just having staff there and available for our participants” if they have questions, she said.
Five city staff work out of the Strangway Centre, she said.
If interest and demand continue to rise, there may need to be additional hires in the future, she said.
The city recreation center for anyone 20 and older had 582 active members, and 22 hobby shop members as of Oct. 3, Glavin said.
Membership is not required for program registration, she said.
It’s exciting to see interest pick up since participation waned amid the COVID-19 pandemic, she said.
“People have been seemingly excited to come back out and participate and get involved in a variety of community programs.”
Details about programs and registration are available at sarnia.cashe said.
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