Written by: Nyx Bajaire, Faith Benjamin, Mason Carr, Natnael Ghirmay, Kenshiro Hinitz, Monica Ngondo, and Gordon Wong; affiliation to HH
A series of photographs showcases the exterior and interior of the ARC, including convention and exercise spaces.
The Activities and Recreation Center (ARC) is up for a proposed $70 million in renovations. ARC Director Rebecca Kimble said the project would revitalize the space to better meet the needs of an ever-expanding student population on campus.
Originally constructed in 2015 to meet the growing needs of the fledgling campus, the ARC is the designated gym and social hub for both the University of Washington Bothell and Cascadia College campuses. The ARC houses 18,000 square feet of workout equipment and spaces on the first floor, and an additional 18,000 square feet of convention space on the second to accommodate for the recreational needs of both UW Bothell and Cascadia College students. The downstairs exercise facilities of the ARC provides students with a space to lift weights, stretch, and play recreational sports. The convention space on the second floor is used to host gatherings, ceremonies and talks, such as this year’s “Maker’s Fair” – A fair that invites students, staff, faculty and alumni to sell their crafts— or the countless events for students that the ARC has hosted over its decade in operation.
The UW Project Tracker names Amy Van Dyke as the Director of the project, along with a budget of $70,000,000 in comparison to initial construction with a budget over $20,000,000. However, there is no timeline specified in the tracker.
A chart showing the past and projected budgets of construction projects at the ARC.
During his time as a University of Washington student, UW alumni and professional Olympic archer Gabriel Anderson said that he frequently visited and worked out at the ARC. “UW Bothell is actually very close to the archery range that I was shooting at,” said Anderson, calling it “better than the other places I was using: it’s nice!”. He said that “keeping professors that are being laid off” seemed to him like a better use of funds than an ARC renovation.
ARC Director Rebecca Kimble said that the project is only at its inception and has yet to be greenlit. She said that the project was brought on as an idea to enhance student experience and allow for necessary upgrades to meet the needs of a growing student body as students return to campus living and involvement post COVID lockdown. “So the reason we haven’t moved forward prior to this was there wasn’t really a need or an ask for it,” said Kimble. The original ARC building opened in 2015. “Five years later, you have COVID” she said. “The student population and enrollment wasn’t really there.” Kimble said they’ve had to “build back up from scratch to see how students are engaging in this space” because of this pause in ARC activities and student traffic, making the project only a recent concept rather than a long-standing development.
Kimble said that she wants the ARC renovation concept plans to be driven by student needs. The Associated Students of the University of Washington Bothell (ASUWB) and the Cascadia College Student Government provided feedback and approved funding for the original 30,000 sqft building. Kimble said that they are working closely with the Student Facility Advisory Committee. This group is composed of students from both the UWB and Cascadia College campuses. Kimble said the group serves as a voice for the student body for the building. She said they can help them learn “what students are interested in,” such as “should we pursue ARC phase two?”.
Vietnamese Student Association President Hanson Huynh
Hanson Huynh is the club president of the University of Washington Bothell Vietnamese Student Association. He said that the ARC was a great resource for his club. “We use the ARC for our scheduled weekly meetings so that is kind of where we come together and discuss just the plans that are going on and also things that are upcoming that we want to prepare for and brief the whole team on.”
The ARC also has student athletes use the recreational fields to host several sporting events throughout the school year. Hanson said they also use the outdoor recreation spaces for things like their Turkey Bowl Ultimate Frisbee event last year. “We had a tournament where we competed with other schools across the pacific northwest so we used the field to practice and bond together with teammates”, said Huynh. Huynh said that they would like to see an indoor basketball and pickle-ball court so they could plan events during the rainy season. He also said that it would help to have more large event spaces. They currently compete with other groups for the space and have to plan their events 8-10 weeks in advance.
UWB enrolled about 6,500 students in 2026. ARC staff member Emma Pai said students often ask for more modern equipment and larger activity areas. She said that most students want spaces that can be used for different activities including sports, fitness classes, and campus events to better support overall wellness and social activities for campus students.
ARC Staff member Emma Pai
Students sometimes say the gym becomes crowded during the 9am-4pm peak use hours. She said that some students need to wait for exercise equipment or enough space to exercise. She said that flexible spaces would help because they could be used for different programs and student activities.
One of the main problems younger adults consistently face is the lack of personal fitness routines and consistent healthy habits. Increased investment into student recreation centers is one way to combat this. With the addition of the dorms on campus at UW Bothell there is now a consistent population of those students who will use the ARC as a primary fitness center. According to a 2026 survey of 1,085 U.S. adults, only 44% of people aged 18-34 are sticking to a fitness routine. Only 26% of 18-34 year olds proactively manage their weight. Students waiting long periods of time for gym equipment and needing additional space to workout connects back to the ARC’s mission to provide more accessibility and better support student wellness across the entire student population.
The University of Washington Bothell Campus and Cascadia College Campus Master Plan describe the ARC as an important space for student recreation, event, and wellness programs. The 2017 document planned for student enrollment to increase from about 7,040 students to around 10,000 students in the future. If the number of students increases in the future, the ARC and other campus facilities may need to expand to support student needs.
As the ARC continues to serve as a place for students to relax, exercise, and entertain, student satisfaction and overall health also continues to be the focus for its future renovation. This future renovation addresses many student concerns and even amplifies students’ involvement in new activities and routines. Students cannot only expect an improved experience here at the ARC but are also encouraged to continue to express their needs and concerns as part of the nonstop effort to always improve the campus experience for all students.
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