Eastlake City Council recently accepted a $30,000 grant from the National Fitness Campaign.

The grant is for the implementation of an outdoor fitness court designed with equipment for bodyweight exercises.

The potential court would be placed at the EPAL facility, but city officials said that, if the court is to be built, it would have to be at no cost to the city. The initial $30,000 grant would not cover the total cost for the court.

“We have to accept the grant but we don’t have to purchase the equipment, so there’s a separation here,” Finance Director Carol-Ann Schindel told council, “…but we are working with other companies to help bring in additional money. There is to be no city money spent on this. We’re strictly trying to fundraise to get this equipment for the park.”

Law Director Randy Klammer said the resolution to accept the grant contained a clause stating that the city will construct and launch the outdoor fitness court by the end of 2019, contingent on receiving sufficient funding.

Schindel also added “so if we don’t get the money, we’re not going to build. But this legislation allows us to accept that initial grant from this company to have the basic seed money to get the rest of the grant monies.”

National Fitness Campaign outdoor fitness courts feature equipment that can be used primarily for bodyweight exercises and they can accommodate 28 users at one time, according to a campaign website. The courts are designed for a series of exercises that can be completed in seven minutes.

If the court is built in Eastlake, Schindel said it would be around the EPAL Community Center, in the area where a new skate park is expected to be placed.

Recreation Committee co-chair Jason Kasunick said it would be nice to see the fitness court be implemented, as long as the financial stipulations are met.