Of course Klotsche should accommodate UWM students above all others, but by mid-May most students will not be using the gym because of summer break.

In 1998 under the auspices of former University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher an idea was born — the Milwaukee Idea.

A major goal of the Milwaukee Idea is “to forge vital and long-lasting community-university partnerships that enhance the quality of life for all,” according to the Milwaukee Idea Web site.

But for community members and UWM alumni who have been told they are no longer welcome at the new and improved Klotsche Center, such words ring hollow.

“I’ve been going (to Klotsche) for 25 years,” said Whitefish Bay resident and retired attorney Howard Hopwood. “To be there all that time and then they build this new place and they kick you out, that’s really not fair.”

According to Jeff Krueger, associate director of the Klotsche Center, community and alumni memberships have been “frozen” because “we want to serve our own students first. They pay for most of this facility and they are our first and foremost customer.”

Krueger said Klotsche Center was deluged with outside membership requests upon its reopening. New memberships were frozen due to concern that the gym would become overcrowded.

But many former Klotsche Center members, like Hopwood, feel cheated, and they are right to feel that way. And for former Klotsche members who live in close proximity to UWM, there is extra injury added to the insult.

“I understand that in living near a large university that parking is obviously an issue, especially because I don’t have a garage or driveway,” said Kevin Henderson, a second-year Marquette University law student who helped instruct a weight training course at Klotsche during his undergraduate years at UWM. “It can be a serious inconvenience. I have had some issues with loud college-aged neighbors partying and yelling at 3 a.m.”

Henderson, however, overlooked all of that — and the convenience of being a Klotsche member was one of reasons why.

“I’ve lived on the East Side within blocks of UWM since I was 12. I’ve always viewed it as a nice thing to have in the community. I’ve always had a Klotsche membership and considered it a perk to have a neighborhood gym.”

Henderson wonders how Klotsche’s new membership policy is going to impact East Side perceptions about UWM.

“It seems to me like an affront to the community when you consider how many people have used the old gym,” he said. “The old facility was nice, and a lot of people appreciated it and it gave us a better feeling about UWM. It’s ironic that after building a multi-million dollar facility, people like myself are getting the boot.”

It is even more ironic considering that the Kern Center at the Milwaukee School of Engineering and Marquette University's gym are open to the public.

Klotsche’s directors are not without sympathy, but at this point they are not budging.

“We recognize there are a lot of long-time members, and we feel bad, but we have to remember that our number one customer is the student at UWM,” Krueger said.

Of course Klotsche should accommodate UWM students above all others, but by mid-May most students will not be using the gym because of summer break. Further, at this point the new facility is a bit of a novelty; the numbers of students who are using it may taper off in the future.

Finally, anybody who has spent years working out a gym will notice a distinct ebb and flow in the numbers of users, especially at university gyms. Such gyms only tend to be crowded during first couple weeks of a semester; after the New Year (the “New Years resolution effect”); and just prior to spring break. Thus, the current freeze on outside memberships seems to be an overreaction.

The potential silver lining in this imbroglio is that the new membership policy is “temporary,” according to Krueger. He does not know, however, when a final decision regarding memberships will be made.

Hopwood said he hopes that “justice will prevail” and outside members and alumni will be able to purchase Klotsche Center memberships again.

Indeed, barring non-students and alumni from the Klotsche Center does not appear to fit in with UWM’s laudable Milwaukee Idea. Hopefully the Klotsche Center’s shortsighted membership policy will be rescinded.

“They can do what they want,” Henderson said. “But if they don't allow for community and alumni memberships, I don’t think it’s going to foster good community relations.”

> Comments