(WSB photos)

As the West Seattle YMCA (WSB sponsor) expansion project gets closer to completion, more new features are coming online. We stopped by this week for a hard-hat tour to get a look at what’s happening. Above, the new outdoor play structure is in, but the really big news is indoors – a new exercise area next to the pool features Queenax, described as “a multipurpose training system that centers on your functional fitness, using exercises that mimic what you do in daily life to improve cardiovascular endurance and gain strength, flexibility, and conditioning.”

You can register for free Queenax demos that start tomorrow, whether you’re a Y member or not – sign up online (find the links on this page) or at the Y. Open drop-in times and group-exercise classes launch December 5th (here’s the schedule).

Back to the tour –

You’ll see a lot of the wood that’s featured in the new ceilings in the main entry, new weight room, and Rotary Room (conference/meeting space):

The new weight room is a work in progress and the changeover is expected toward year’s end, when the Y will close for a few days to move everything over:

Parking area, street, and sidewalk work will be finished toward the end, since so many construction-activity-related comings and goings continue.

Here’s where the new entrance will be:

You might recall that part of the expansion project will orient the Y toward SW Snoqualmie Street, on the south side. That section of Snoqualmie also is an official “festival street,” which means it can be closed to motorized-vehicle traffic for special events. The first one was this year’s final West Seattle Outdoor Movies presentation – the entire series will be there starting next year, but there will be other events too, and the Y’s Josh Sutton tells us a committee will be formed early next year to create the list of all festival-street events. Getting the city the full list will save the Y time and money in the permit process.