Penn State students still want more recreational space, according to a recent $70,000 study commissioned by Penn State.

The study, which was completed by Brailsford & Dunlavey in fall 2006, proposed several improvements, including building more space for working out, building more lap pools and connecting the White Building with the HUB-Robeson Center.

According to a university press release, almost 100 percent of the students interviewed were in favor of substantial expansion of recreational facilities and are willing to pay a dedicated fitness fee to fund the projects.

Director of Unions and Student Activities Stan Latta said the university may not have the resources to meet all of the study's suggestions but will work to find a better balance between resources and demand.

Latta said the study was commissioned because more students this year were inquiring about long lines at the gym and were interested in Penn State providing more opportunities for physical recreation.

Latta added that the study was financed with the university's general fund, not student fees.

Paul Brailsford, CEO of Brailsford & Dunlavey, said other Big Ten schools have spent more than $100,000 on recreational studies "with the anticipation that they're going to do something substantial."

Because Penn State "did not have a strong position that they were actually going to go build anything," the study had a limited scope, he said. It was "more of a check-up so [Penn State] can sit back and react and weigh options."

According to the study, there is currently about 290,000 square feet of indoor recreational space on campus, which includes the Intramural Building, Rec Hall, the Natatorium and the White Building. This equates to about seven square feet of recreational space per student. The university's goal is to increase recreation space to about 11 square feet per student and make facilities more user-friendly, according to a university press release.

Brailsford said the current Big Ten average for indoor recreation space is about eight square feet per student but this number will increase to more than 11 square feet per student within the next few years.

Projects to increase recreational space at schools like Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois and Ohio State will help raise the average, he said.

The study also found that 103,000 square feet of indoor recreational space -- less than three square feet per student -- is dedicated solely to student use.

However, Latta said the 103,000 square foot figure is misleading because it doesn't take recreational space that is shared by students, intercollegiate athletics and academic programs space into account.

For example, he said, because the Rec Hall gym is used for intercollegiate athletics, it was not counted as being available only for student use because students cannot use it "100 percent of the time."

Although Latta said Penn State "recognized we were short in some areas," he said he thinks seven square feet per student is the more accurate number for the current recreation situation on campus.

The firm that completed the study spoke to students, faculty and staff to determine priorities for additional recreational space.

The first priority was for cardiovascular fitness and weightlifting. There is currently 35,525 square feet of space in this category and based on the study's research, about 27,000 more square feet is needed to meet demand.

The study also found that 13,700 more square feet of multipurpose/activity space (beyond the current 42,047 square feet) and 2,100 more square feet of recreational swimming space (beyond the current 6,567 square feet) need to be built to meet demand in those categories.

Improvements may also be made to the intramural sports program -- which had to turn away more than 100 IM football teams this year -- and the fitness program, although director of strength training and fitness coach Chip Harrison said the university is always trying to make improvements.

"We have a higher demand than supply at this point," Harrison said. "We're always trying to supply more."

Latta said the firm also recommended building an above-ground connector between the HUB and the White Building, and a committee has been formed to consider this.

Because the staff and recreational service are only considering new ideas now, Latta said he didn't know how much any improvements would cost or by how much recreational space would change.

"Everyone is concerned about the cost of higher education," Brailsford said. "Any time you make a big resource allocation it needs to be carefully considered and that's what the university is doing now."