Although NIU has spent money in worse ways (the desperately unnecessary Convocation Center, for example), renovating the Chick Evans Field House is yet another decision that works out better for students on paper than it does in practice.

The purpose of spending $2.3 million on reconstruction was to offer a second facility for students’ exercise and recreation, thus reducing the stress on the Student Recreation Center during peak hours. It was supposed to provide students with an alternative to the overcrowded basketball courts and hours-long wait times for elliptical riders.

And it does – if the time you’re looking to use the Rec is between 4 and 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Outside of those 24 hours per week, though, you’re out of luck.

John Sweeney, director of campus recreation, pointed out that the renovations added “80,000 square feet of play space” for students to use.

Unfortunately, the fieldhouse’s few usable hours hardly provide the majority of students with extra facilities to use, which leaves another NIU generation at risk of gaining the “freshman 15.” The hours certainly don’t accommodate the many students on campus with afterschool jobs and night classes.

Furthermore, the lack of weekend hours shows that the changes to the fieldhouse were made with someone other than the students in mind. The weekends are the days that students who are busy studying, working and attending class during the week use to practice their favorite sports and burn calories. With the increase in incoming freshman, the Rec is bound to see a rise in weekend attendance and could benefit from having a second facility for overflow – if it has decent hours.

To ensure the $2.3 million wasn’t spent in vain, NIU needs to find a way to expand the hours the fieldhouse is open for student use. Surely, if so much has been spent already, a little more money can be dished out to pay a few extra staff members for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.