The Park Center in Murray — Attraction in Murray

I've been a customer for just about a year.

Pros: 1: Cheap. My wife and I pay just over $30/month. 2: Generally nice facility. Nothing fancy but it usually gets the job done. Employees are nice, albeit useless. 3: Track. Has a nice track on the top floor for runners. 4: Pool. My wife uses the pool occasionally and likes it. 5: Not too busy. The times we frequent are usually not too bad, with some exceptions.

Cons: 1: Cleanliness. Men's bathroom usually has a solid half inch coat of urine across the floor at all times. Bathrooms are maybe cleaned once a day, although I've personally seen filth carry over day to day. I have never personally seen an employee clean anything, although I'm sure they do at night. When they feel like it.

2: Maintenance and facility. Gym equipment is in okay repair, but most of it is very old. Weight room is lacking in several key pieces of equipment, such as a deadlift rack. Cardio floor is lacking in stairsteppers. The cardio equipment is nicer than the weight equipment.

3: Staff. Employees are mostly teenagers. While this isn't inherently bad, most of the kids on staff here are completely useless. The kids I talked to couldn't answer basic questions as to why the WiFi was down for 3 weeks straight. The kids don't know the manager's names. Speaking of which, I have never actually seen a manger in the time I have been here. There are anywhere from 3 to 6 kids that sit up at the front at any given moment and do absolutely nothing. They sit in a circle and talk instead of cleaning equipment or the bathrooms. I have never witnessed an employee clean anything in the hours I have spent working out.

4: Basketball courts. The courts themselves are nice, but they are nearly continuously occupied by hordes of annoying teenagers. Parents drop their kids off after school so that they don't have to deal with them, which means that the customers of Park Center get to instead. Any rules of the gym are never enforced because the employees sit up front all day.

5: Creepy and weird old men. Every gym has creeps, and Park Center is no exception. There are 3 or 4 regular old men that stare at the young women constantly. I'm sure that the Department of Corrections would like to see what their offenders are doing on their days off. If these gross sacks of skin haven't committed several sex crimes already, I'm sure that they will in the future. Gym staff do absolutely nothing, probably for fear of their own lives.

6: Hours. The hours of operation for the gym are constantly changing from month to month. It is impossible to keep straight. One month the gym is closed Sunday, the next it closes randomly at 7 PM. Without an explanation, it would seem that the managers change the schedule to give themselves plenty of time off. Except there are never managers present at the facility, so I have absolutely no...

UPDATE: The facility is getting cleaner and I do see lifeguards patrolling in the changing room. I have not seen e-smokers and cellphone users in the locker room lately. I do however carry my stuff around to avoid theft.

The rules are not always followed. People should NOT be allowed to play in the recreational pool during the 8 mins pee break. Otherwise, just cancel the pee break. Non swimmers should NOT be allowed in the competition pool. Floating toys should be prohibited in the competition pool. Just enforce the rule on the book.

OLD: There are thieves; my phone was stolen. So was my iPod Mini. I have lost other stuff over the years.

I see people smoke e-cigarettes inside the gym. Kids are taking photos and using cellphones in the locker room, even though it is prohibited.

I hope that the center would NOT only worry about their liability and reputation (See attached photo), but also care about the patrons. My recommendations:

Off-duty lifeguards should patrol the property more often. They sometimes walk quickly through the locker room without even looking around. They should give out warnings about potential theft and robbery. They should keep an eye on suspicious individuals. The center ought to enforce rules.

A successful theft will breed more crimes.

I have voiced my concerns multiple times. No apparent actions. I will rate 2 star until they take concrete actions to prevent theft and other disorderly conduct.

Here is my old review:

Recommended, but there is room for improvement. I have been a member for 10 years. The staff are friendly and efficient. The facility is clean and well managed. There is plenty of equipment. In sum, this is a good place for exercise and for recreation.

There are some downsides: 1. It does not open on Sundays during the summer. 2. The weight room is pretty small and can get crowded. 3. There are sometimes wild kids roaming around and taking photos in the locker room....

I’ve been going to the Murray Rec center for 8 years and this is the last. I used to be able to always get a good workout in but now it’s just too crowded. The staff rarely if ever greets you when you come in, even if you greet them. They continue to pack more and more equipment into a weight room that already had too little space to use if there’s anything more than just a couple people in the gym. The local fire department uses the facility regularly, which is obviously nice they get to use, but they bring in their dispatch radio that they turn up loud so everyone that wants to have a conversation or enjoy the music being played over the speakers instead gets treated to sudden loud bursts of dispatch operators calling out details of traffic accidents and fires. Enjoy that! There are a couple groups of juveniles from a youth home that show up regularly that will take over large areas but not utilize the machinery, just make sure you can’t use it. Oh, you want to run on the track? They’ll be there too, going the wrong way and blocking all three lanes. I’d written an email to the director (at a front desk worker’s suggestion) detailing my concerns and asking if anything could be done and received no reply. I’ve politely asked at the desk before that someone please help when matters are occurring but It’s never resulted in staff doing anything more than telling me “okay. We’ll check on it,” only to watch nothing happen. I’m glad so many people are able to utilize the center but I’m no longer able to get a workout in, not without a lot of frustration and waiting. Commercial gyms are not my thing but at least when I’m paying money there I can actually get a workout in. I’m sorry to let go of the rec center but it’s no...