FULTON, MO -- A Missouri Y has teamed up with an area hospital to create a fitness-focused annex on hospital grounds for members of the community.

The YMCA of Callaway County opened its new annex on the campus of Fulton State Hospital in an unused portion of the hospital complex’s cafeteria earlier this month, according to The Fulton (MO) Sun. Although the annex is open to all members of the community, it is expected to be especially beneficial to employees of the state-run hospital.

In exchange for providing the building, the Y is offering employees of the Fulton State Hospital a reduced membership rate of $10 a month compared to the usual $37.50. The facility is open 24 hours to allow better access for hospital shift workers.

A spokesperson from the Y said he hoped the new annex would also help to reduce overcrowding at the town’s main Y fitness facility.

The annex’s modest 6,000-square-foot facilities include a group exercise studio and a locker room with two private shower rooms. Most of the weights, strength and cardio equipment was purchased from a for-profit club that went out of business in the St. Louis area.

Funding for the new facility was made possible through a $300,000 three-year grant from the Missouri Foundation for Health.

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