Utah's Washington City Community Center Wins Award

April 1, 2009 - PRLog -- ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL – The Washington City Community Center in Utah earned recognition as Gerflor North America’s Outstanding Project of 2008.

The state-of-the-art, 110,000-square-foot center sports three separate, full-size gyms, a walking/jogging track, spinning/aerobics room and childcare center with Gerflor’s Taraflex flooring.

The center’s architect, Mark Wilson, welcomes the designation by Gerflor. During the past decade, he has specified Taraflex flooring in numerous facilities and praises what it brings to projects.

“We’ve made the decision to use Taraflex flooring because of the value of the product to the client and its quality,” he explains. “It has characteristics that I like. It’s engineered to play like a wood floor with the same basketball bounce but it’s fairly maintenance free which the owners like. Taraflex brings tremendous benefits because of its flexibility to be used for many different sports activities and other purposes.”

In Washington City, the three gyms are set up with basketball standards and volleyball anchors. All three have Taraflex® Sport M Plus flooring in Maple Design. They are distinguished by their differently colored borders of black, green and blue. Although one gym has gymnastics equipment, Wilson says all three can be used for any activity. Since the center’s opening in May 2008, the gyms already have demonstrated their versatility for indoor soccer games, basketball tournaments, boutiques, trade shows, Boy Scout programs and other events.  

The spinning/aerobics room and walking/jogging track were also installed with Sport M Plus and the childcare center has Taraflex® Multi-Use 3.0. The well-attended center features Utah’s largest indoor aquatic complex and a rock-climbing wall.

Washington City Community Center decision makers visited Wilson’s other Utah recreation center projects with Taraflex flooring. “During the site visits they spoke to their colleagues who are very happy with their choice of flooring,” he says, adding the responses of their counterparts helped lead to the selection of Taraflex.  

Wilson took them to the Lehi Legacy Center, which was completed in 2001, and the Pleasant Grove Community Center. The Lehi Legacy Center encompasses 108,000 square feet with three full-size gyms, an elevated walking track and aquatics facility. Pleasant Grove has 77,000 square feet with three full-size gyms, a weight room and cardio-aerobics area.
   
Design Team of Salt Lake City, UT, www.designteam.cc, installed the Taraflex flooring at the Washington City Community Center.

Mark Wilson Architects, www.markwilsonarchitects.com, is a diversified firm providing professional services in architecture, land planning, master planning, interior design and facilities management.

Gerflor manufactures Taraflex® Sport M Plus, which provides comfort and performance with an enhanced shock absorption rate of 35% and accurate ball bounce. Taraflex® Multi-Use 3.0 is extremely durable and ideal for multipurpose uses. Both floors have permanent product treatments to minimize maintenance, reduce friction burn risk and protect against skin-related infections. Sport M Plus and Multi-Use 3.0 are easy to maintain, have up to 43% recycled content and can be 100% recycled. They also contribute credits to LEED certification. For more information, visit www.gerflortaraflex.com.

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Gerflor is a world leader in the manufacture of indoor synthetic sports and multipurpose flooring. Its Taraflex line includes 14 different products designed for superior performance, durability, easy maintenance and safety. Taraflex floors contain up to 43% recycled material, can be 100% recycled at the end of their lifespan and contribute to LEED credits.