ABC’s Extreme Makeover team isn’t coming to the Rutherford County Family YMCA, but by March 2012, it will certainly look and feel like it's been there.

Work is set to begin in November on the first major renovations of the family wellness center since it opened in 1995. While the improvement project won’t add square footage to the existing facility, it will reconfigure a number of areas to maximize their use by Y members and the community.

YMCA Senior Vice President of Facilities and New Communities Rob Gray says plans for the facility update began with a community needs assessment conducted in late 2010.

“After 15 years of serving the Murfreesboro community, we really wanted to take a fresh look at whether or not the facility itself was still well suited to meet the most pressing needs of the more than 7,500 people who benefit from it," he said. "We knew the time had come for some facility upgrades, but we didn’t want to make decisions on what those should be without first asking the community what it needed most from its YMCA.”

More than 800 people were surveyed by an independent research firm last year, and their feedback helped to shape plans for the comprehensive renovation.

As the current board chair, Jonathan Jones is the Y’s top volunteer leader, and says he’s excited about the center’s potential to enhance its service to the community through the renovations.

“The YMCA has been such a huge part of mine and my family’s life; I know how much it enriches our lives, and I’ve seen the difference it makes in the lives of countless others, so I’m honored to be a volunteer leader of the Rutherford County Y, and I look forward to continuing to help the organization reach out to embrace and love on our community. This is such an exciting time," he said.

With epidemic rates of obesity and chronic disease facing Middle Tennesseans, Jones and other Y leaders say one of the biggest needs is serving a growing health seeker population.

‘Health seekers’ is a term commonly used to describe people who rely on continuous supportive relationships and environments to succeed in improving their health.

Often, they’ve tried to make lifestyle changes and failed for a variety of reasons.

Leslee Ricketts oversees the wellness programs at the Rutherford County Y and says breaking down the environmental barriers to stepping inside a wellness center has never been more important, and it’s something the Y hopes will result thanks to a new beginner exercise area.

“For someone who’s struggling with their health, just the thought of being in a gym setting can be intimidating, but if we can reduce some of the intimidation factors of the environment, a health seeker is much more likely to take a critical first step toward a healthier lifestyle,” Ricketts said. “We don’t want people in our community to look through the glass and think, ‘I can’t see myself there,’ and never walk through the door to get the support and encouragement they need.”

The beginner wellness area will replace the center’s existing racquetball courts.

Other areas, including current office space and the existing teen center, will be reconfigured to accommodate the growing demand for the Y’s community outreach programs like After Breast Cancer and Restore Ministries, for example.

The teen center space will become more multi-purpose to maximize its use, and will be laid out much like the new teen center at the Margaret Maddox Y in east Nashville, which opened in 2010.

Operations Executive Marida Millican said the teen center updates will allow the space to be used during times of the day when it might otherwise sit empty.

“That space will still be a fun, nurturing safe haven for the young people who pour into the Y after school and during the summer months, but we’re going to make some adjustments so that it can also be a gathering place for our active older adults, along with our outreach program participants and Mother’s Day Out children who tend to be here during the hours our youth and teens spend in school.”

Millican added that reconfiguring some of the Y’s current space will give members more places to meet one-on-one or in small groups.

“Our After Breast Cancer program continues to grow, with more and more local survivors turning to the Y for support during recovery," Millican said. "The personal attention participants get from their trainers and nutritionists is key, and we to make sure there are adequate spaces for those sessions to take place.”

Other facility upgrades will include:

•Renovated welcome center/lobby;

• Renovated locker rooms;

• Updated flooring and energy efficient lighting throughout;

• New Wi-Fi access;

• Fireplace addition and increased social spaces throughout;

• Teaching kitchen (for healthy cooking demonstrations, senior lunch & learn events, etc.); and

• Expanded cycling studio Privacy wall for the outdoor pool (on Thompson Lane-facing side)

Architecture firm Collective Design Solutions, LLC is currently finalizing construction plans for the bid process. Work on the renovations is set to begin in November with an expected completion in March 2012, and there are no plans to close the facility during construction.