Recreational sports facilities are increasingly part of the landscape on college and university campuses. Construction and operating costs have increased in the last decades and are supported by a variety of revenue streams, which vary as a function of public versus private control of the institution. This study examines differences in students' involvement in, satisfaction with and perceived benefits accruing from participating in recreational sports at an urban, research extensive public institution. The same survey was administered to two samples of students, once in 1992 and again in 1999 after the opening of a new recreation facility at the institution. Analysis of variance was used to examine the main effects for the facility in addition to the other main effects for year-in-school, gender, and residence. Results indicated significantly higher levels of student satisfaction after the opening of the new facility, but did not indicate higher levels of involvement and perceived benefits.
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