The fitness center, room 290, is splitting into two facilities, a cardiovascular room and a weight room, according to Physical Education Coordinator John Fiore.

The cardiovascular equipment will be moved to room 197, which was previously the simulation room designated for driver’s education students, Fiore said.

“Taking our cardio [equipment] out of our fitness center drastically increases the space up in the fitness center,” Fiore said. “That facility up there was too cramped with too much equipment.”

The cardiovascular equipment is expected to be moved and serviced by early next week, according to Fiore. In addition, there was a request submitted to the district for additional cardiovascular equipment. The driver’s education classes will gain a new classroom space, room 198, and new driving simulators, according to Humberto Gonzalez, wellness and driver’s education teacher.

“[The split] is going to have more flexibility for teachers, which will then benefit the students,” Gonzalez said. “Instead of having two large classes in the fitness center, you can have the class that is doing weight training upstairs and the other class downstairs.”

In the future, Fiore said he hopes that audio and visual equipment can be added to the room.

“We aren’t even sure the room is going to work out and be the best situation,” Fiore said. “We are basically at a stage where we are piloting these things. We want to make sure the facility works for us before we start doing all the extra add-ons.”

The decision to create two separate facilities was made by Fiore, former athletic director Jim Konrad, the assistant principal of operations, Ronald Helms, and the facilities manager, Lisa Corrigan.

Senior athlete Adrian Bakas supports the shift. He believes the new arrangement will improve the quality of his football practices.

“There is so much more space now,” Bakas said. “Before, it was just too cramped. It just made it harder to get around in [the fitness center].”