A new cardio and weights facility open to all Recreational Sports Facility members is expected to open Oct. 1 at Memorial Stadium.

The $1.8 million facility, called the Rec Sports Fitness Center, repurposes 5,000 square feet of space in Memorial Stadium and will feature equipment for individuals with disabilities and offer those who live on the east side of campus easier access to workout facilities.

The center aims to provide additional workout space for the campus population. A 2007 study estimated that Cal Rec Sports, which provides recreational facilities for the campus, was only meeting 50 percent of demand.

“We need to provide more space and more opportunities for students, faculty and staff to workout,” said Eric Craypo, communications director at the RSF, in an email. “When the space at Memorial Stadium became available, we saw it as an opportunity that we could not pass up.”

According to Craypo, Cal Athletics was looking to extend the use of the newly renovated Memorial Stadium beyond home football games, creating an opportunity to collaborate on the project.

The new center will be open to anyone with an RSF membership. UC Berkeley senior Carly Wasserman, who lives on Northside and goes to the RSF every day, says there is usually insufficient time during the school year to walk to the facility on Southside.

“During the summer, I still really have to motivate myself to go down there,” Wasserman said. “And during the school year, it’s hard to work into my schedule.”

The new space will not have any group classes or courts but will have weights and cardio machines, such as treadmills and elliptical trainers. New features also include a small Technogym Kinesis station, new equipment for individuals with disabilities and private, gender-neutral changing rooms and showers.

Contact Mary Zhou at [email protected]