The Dynamyx Gymnastics Club has been working hard behind the scenes to make sure their new facility is ready for gymnasts this fall.
The last eight months have been a whirlwind of activity at the site in Campbell Business Park since the club celebrated the groundbreaking ceremony in February. The club has had to overcome a number of hurdles since then to keep the project going amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Now the club's vision is almost realized as they prepare to take over ownership of the 24,512 sq. ft. space inside a new multi-tenant building on Oct. 15. Dynamyx took the Gazette on a tour of the new facility to get a first look inside the new gym before it's set to open Nov. 1.
"We really want people to feel that this is a safe place to bring their kids so they can get some activity back in their lives. This new facility offers so much more than we could offer in our old facility," said Cathy Schwer, Dynamyx past president, standing outside of the building.
"We're not going to lie, COVID hit us really hard, but we're forging ahead."
Construction is moving right along at the site on Carleton Drive as crews prep the site to pave the parking lot this week. The front doors lead into a large mudroom where the front desk will go, with a party room to host events located close by.
Coach offices and a sensory room for the club's special needs athletes line the wall of the sprawling gym space. Change rooms, bathrooms and accessible bathrooms are built on the ground floor for athletes.
Painting needs to be finished along the walls and mats need to be put down on the floor, but club president Reanne Lefebvre was proud to point out some of the gym's new features.
"Now that we're allowed to have trampoline back in, we're gonna have the trampoline here," Lefebvre said, pointing to one pit area. The second pit will be home to the club's vault run.
"(Athletes) can run as fast as they can, then they'll vault and land into the matted pit. That's how they learn all their flips and tumbles," she said. Gym mats will take the place of foam blocks so staff can easily sanitize them.
"We can sanitize the mats now, rather than the kids actually touching the foam, because how do you sanitize foam? These are some things that we have to do due to COVID now."
The large space will allow for the club to separate their recreational and competitive athletes so the two groups can work on different skills without having to worry about overlapping, she said.
An area has been carved out for spectators to watch athletes hone their skills on the gym floor. It's a small area for now, considering there will be limits on how many people are allowed inside the building due to COVID-19, Lefebvre said, but there will always be opportunities to expand it later on.
Two staircases lead up to the second floor of the building, where kids between three and four years old can let go of pent-up energy inside the Dynamites play gym room. Down the hall is where people can find the new board room, administrative offices and a break room for coaches.
"They actually get windows," Lefebvre said, smiling. "We didn't have any windows in our old building, so having windows here is like, 'Wow!'"
Gymnastics is a foundational sport, and other user groups could also benefit from the new gym's design, Lefebvre said. For example, the recreation and sports academies run by St. Albert school boards can give students in other sports a place to practice and train.
"I have three boys and I started them in gymnastics just to learn body awareness," she said.
"Engaging your children in gymnastics will teach them about their body and how to move it, and then from there, they can move on to other sports. (The skills) are so transferable."
To help Dynamyx get across the finish line, the not-for-profit is hosting online fundraisers for the new building.
There's a $5 buy-a-block fundraiser to fill out the club's gymnasium pits, $25 gift certificates and a general donation site on their website. People can also donate to Dynamyx through a bottle drive run through Skip the Depot.
"Fundraising will continue to allow us to get more equipment and create more programs for the new facility because we have so much space now," Lefebvre said.
The club offers recreational, competitive, and special needs programming. Anyone interested in classes inside Dynamyx's new gym can register online.
Dynamyx is also looking to partner with local businesses through corporate sponsorships with the new facility. For sponsorship inquiries, contact [email protected].
