Naperville Park District building outdoor circuit training facility

The Naperville Park District is spending $165,000 to build an outdoor circuit training facility at its Frontier Sports Complex location, with nearly half the money already raised through sponsorships and grants.

Slated for completion this spring, the new fitness court is one of about 250 facilities in the nation being built through the National Fitness Campaign. The park district installed a concrete pad on the north side of the Frontier Sports Complex at 3109 Cedar Glade Drive in anticipation of the equipment installation when temperatures rise.

Park District Director of Recreation and Facilities Brad Wilson - who next week moves into a new role as the organization's executive director - said the National Fitness Campaign originally approached Naperville city officials with the opportunity. But the park district seemed like a better fit to execute the vision.

"We have fitness stations placed in some of our parks that are connected with some of our trails," Wilson said. "And within the last year, we opened a challenge course at Wolf's Crossing Community Park, which has been extremely popular.

"We saw this as another opportunity to bring an outdoor fitness element to promote health and wellness in the community," he said.

The National Fitness Campaign developed the seven-station workout system in 2012 to transform public spaces into community fitness hubs. Naperville's court will be free to the public and adaptable to all fitness levels.

While workout instructions are provided at each station, there's also an app with instructions and fitness classes.

Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush is paying $50,000 to be the primary sponsor of Naperville's court. The park district received a $25,000 grant through the Illinois Park and Recreation Association, and StretchLab NapervilleWest paid $2,500 as a sponsor.

The remaining cost is included in the 2022 budget, but Wilson said the park district continues to seek sponsorships and grants. Any interested businesses or organizations should contact Stacey Fontechia at sfontechia@napervilleparks.org.

"It's a great location at one of our more popular facilities," Wilson said. "And as we continue to work through the pandemic, it's important to continue to offer outdoor fitness opportunities."