A year after Hurricane Gustav ravaged parts of the University Student Recreational Complex, students can expect to see some parts returning to normal in the next two months. But the locker rooms will not be completed until Jan. 2, as renovations have yet to begin. Michael Giles, associate director for operations and project management, said major renovations on the gym’s roof — torn off by Hurricane Gustav’s winds — started July 6. Giles, who said construction on the roof is halfway complete, expects the gym to be fully complete by late October or mid-November. Gustav’s winds ripped off parts of the gym roof, and rainwater ruined the gym floor. Giles said workers removed the gym floor and are now replacing roof tiles and painting parts of the gym, but renovations to the gym floor will not start until the roof is complete.In addition to the gym damage, the high humidity because of a four-day loss of electricity rusted the metal lockers. Giles said they plan to start renovating the lockers Nov. 18 — a project he expects will take about two months — and he expects to have locker rooms open by Jan. 2.Melissa Longino, University Recreation associate director, said UREC users will not be able to access the locker rooms — which include showers and saunas — during the construction period.  UREC officials are looking into accommodations for users during that time period, such as temporary hoses on the outdoor patio for pool users and temporary shelving to store belongings, she said. Longino said shelves are already available in the cardio theater area, though more will be needed to keep belongings out the way of foot traffic. Giles said security of personal property will be an issue during construction because users will not have lockers available to lock up their belongings. “No matter what we do, storage areas will not be secure,” he said. “We’ll really encourage users not to bring valuables with them, as there is no way to ensure security.” Longino said students purchasing locker plans will receive a reduced rate because of the construction. She said users renting on a semester basis will get a 25 percent discount, while users on a yearly plan will have two months added to their rental time. “Fortunately the locker room construction falls on two holidays — Thanksgiving and winter break — so it minimizes time the facilities will be in use,” Longino said. Giles said UREC officials are looking at renovations to the locker rooms as well as the actual lockers. “During that two-month time period, we will be ripping out lockers and installing new ones,” he said. “We also hope to be able to paint, install new light fixtures and give the rooms an overall renovated feel.” Giles said they plan to replace the outdoor canopy, also damaged in the storm, within the next couple of weeks. He said the new canopy will “lighten up” the entrance. “The replacement will have little impact on users,” he said. “It will take about a week to complete.” COSTSThe overall cost of the renovations is $2 million, Giles said. He said the money comes from insurance and state recovery funds given to the University. State officials must approve all aspects of the project because the UREC renovations qualify as a state project. Giles said the project is moving fast for a state project, despite having a year gap between the storm and the time renovations began. “This is not something that can be done overnight,” he said. “This is not the only building on campus or in the state that was damaged. We’re very pleased at the speed of this project.” OPERATIONSConstruction is ahead of schedule and has experienced few problems, Giles said. He said he is happy with the contractor and architect’s time schedule. Giles said UREC users should not expect to see any variations on the old design compared to before the storm because the project is funded through insurance money. “When it’s completed, it’s going to look exactly like it did Aug. 31, 2008,” he said. But he said the gym, roof and locker rooms will be new, unlike the previous 17-year-old facilities. “We were getting close to having to replace the roof and renovate the locker rooms anyway, since they were so old,” he said. “Now we’ll have a chance to replace everything — it will all be new.” Longino said dealing with damaged facilities has been tough, especially with users growing anxious with little progress in renovations. She said UREC has worked hard to keep all services fully functional the past year.  “People wonder why renovations didn’t happen sooner,” she said. “It’s been just as hard on us to operate without a third of our facility. We’re just as excited to be able to reopen.” TEMPORARY FACILITIESUREC officials found ways to continue all of their services for the last year despite damaged facilities. Longino said they moved the basketball courts outside, taking up three of the nine tennis courts. She said not everyone was happy with the transition at first, but users have gotten used to the change. Giles said most users were cooperative with the changes, causing little conflict. “Most patrons understood the process and cooperated,” he said. “Obviously tennis players would say they’d like more courts, and basketball players would like to be indoors, but they’re managing.” Giles said the outdoor courts are the same length as the indoor ones — the only major difference is the floor, changing from wood to concrete. However, he said concrete basketball courts are common in outdoor courts. Because of the increased popularity of the outdoor basketball courts, Giles said UREC officials are discussing making the change permanent.————Contact Steven Powell at [email protected]