McHenry Rec Center giving away yearlong membership at grand opening

McHENRY – Nearly three months after it opened, the new, $5.8 million McHenry Recreation Center is offering a number of prizes, including a free yearlong membership, at an upcoming grand opening event.

The event will be from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the center, 3636 Municipal Drive in McHenry, according to a news release from the city.

In addition to the membership, which the first 100 attendees will have a chance to win, the event will feature facility tours, group exercises and program demonstrations, as well as activities for children, contests, vendor booths and a community blood drive, city officials said.

Raffles for trial memberships, personal training sessions, pool passes and other such gifts also will be awarded throughout the event.

In conjunction with the grand opening, a community blood drive will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and anyone who donates blood will receive a voucher for a free pint of ice cream from Baskin-Robbins.

The multimillion-dollar project included building an 18,200-square-foot facility including multipurpose rooms and a 4,500-square-foot fitness center that provides fixed weights, free weights and cardiovascular machines, among other equipment.

To date, the center has just under 1,200 members, Recreation Center Manager Matt LaPorte said.

“Which puts us at our mark as far as being able to cover our operating costs,” he added.

Since the Feb. 29 opening, the new center has elicited a myriad of high praise from members and has hired about 50 part-time staffers, from desk workers to personal trainers, LaPorte said. The city’s parks and recreation department also relocated into the new facility from the municipal building.

So far, the group exercises have become one of the more popular components, with about 44 percent of visits being for such classes. Meanwhile, LaPorte said, there still is room for development in the personal training area.

During the week, the center is open from 5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays through Fridays; from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Fridays; and from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays.

For information, call 815-363-2160 or email reccenter@ci.mchenry.il.us.