Houston Gym prepares for $20 million renovation

Buffalo State's Houston Gym will begin receiving a $20-million upgrade next fall, with a new fitness center and individual team locker rooms on the docket.

The building will be closed for almost two years while the construction is completed, said Mike Bonfante, facilities project manager.

Initial plans for upgrading the building date back to 2006, when an evaluation of all of the buildings on campus revealed that the Houston Gym needed the most work, said Steven Shaffer, manager for design and construction.

"Somewhat surprisingly, Houston Gym had the most deferred maintenance of any building, meaning that a lot of the finishes were simply worn out in the building." he said. "A lot of the systems, like the heating and ventilation system, the electrical system and the plumbing system were really in sad shape."

Problems arose when administrators were unsure of where to put programs located in the building while construction was ongoing. Construction was postponed until a solution presented itself.

The closing of Campus West in the Buckham Campus School opened up space for the programs, allowing the construction to move forward, Shaffer said.

"Once Buckham became available for us to move portions of Health and Wellness and the athletic programs out, we jumped at the opportunity to move into complete design of the building," he said.

Albany-based architect firm Clough Harbour & Associates, who specialize in sports facilities, will oversee the project, Shaffer said.

Right now, Houston Gym hosts the athletic department, the health and wellness department and the criminal justice department. All three will have full-time program space in Campus West, Bonfante said.

Criminal justice will not be moving back to Houston Gym, allowing for more space for the athletic department and health and wellness, Shaffer said.

Some of the upgrades being made to the building include new heating and ventilation systems which will allow air conditioning in the building, a new, larger fitness center and individual locker rooms for the teams on campus, Bonfante said.

"The teams will have their own lockers," he said. "They won't be sharing them. They'll also have dedicated toilet and shower facilities."

Other improvements include better handicap access, new windows and a new roof, Shaffer said. All of the construction is being done to limit impact on the environment, and all of the new systems put into the building will be energy efficient, he said.

Feedback received from staff, faculty and students on plans for the upgrades has been positive, Bonfante said. Alumni have weighed in as well.

"A lot of alumni have been presented with this, especially on the athletic side, and they're really excited about this project," he said.

The athletic department is happy to see the plans moving forward, said Jeff Ventura, assistant director of athletics. It's been in use since the 1960's, and doesn't reflect the current needs of the athletic department.

"There is no men's bathroom upstairs, no women's bathroom downstairs," he said. "It's just little things like that. The needs of athletics and recreation have changed over the last 50 years."

Michael Canfield can be reached by email at canfield.record@live.com.