Towels at the Cal Poly Recreation Center have been gradually disappearing since they first appeared a month after the gym’s opening. There are approximately 150 towels remaining out of the original 2,000, University Union Advisory Board (UUAB) chair Karen Mesrobian said.
“It was not something we foresaw as being an issue,” Mesrobian said.
English freshmen Christian Thatcher admitted to accidentally taking a towel from the Recreation Center.
“I rarely use (the towels), but one time I did use them, I put it over my shoulder, and I forgot to put it back,” he said. “If the Rec Center wants it back, I’ll wash it and return it.”
Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) is currently taking measures to solve the problem. It is in the process of buying new lime green towels and improving the signage to make it clear to drop them off when exiting, Mesrobian said.
“If we do as much as we can and it’s still a problem, we might have to look at discontinuing them,” Mesrobian said.
Discontinuing the towel service will be a last resort. ASI Membership and Staff Services Coordinator Lindsey Lee said other measures will be taken before talk of discontinuing happens.
“It’s always a reevaluation process,” Lee said. “We are looking into putting more baskets out and using bright colors to remind students to return them.”
ASI wants to keep the service going because it is a perk to students and to people with memberships, Lee said.
“We want to live up to people’s expectations,” she said.
The idea for the towel service came about because ASI wants the Recreation Center experience to be enjoyable and hoped to give the gym a “club feel,” Mesrobian said.
Towels will not be handed out until the delivery of lime green towels arrives, which is expected to be within the next week.
The lime green towels won’t all be put out at once, either. They will be phased in and inventory will be taken once a week to find out if the problem persists.
“The best thing you can do is at least put a neon sign or check out towels with the hand-scanners,” Thatcher said.