Plans for Temporary Gym Shelved

The Simi Valley Unified School District has scrapped plans to build a temporary gymnasium at Simi Valley High School after state authorities said they would not approve the project, school officials said.

The district had hoped to construct a $600,000 temporary facility to replace the high school’s gym that was condemned after the Northridge earthquake.

But the Department of State Architects recently informed district officials that it would not approve a temporary gym to handle the number of students and faculty the school anticipated--about 1,500 people, officials said.

“They will not approve it because the occupancy is too high,” said Lowell Shultze, a spokesman for the district. The temporary gym would have been used for school assemblies, basketball games and physical education classes, Shultze said.

Instead, the district will focus on plans to repair the high school’s damaged gym and multipurpose room, which have been closed since the January temblor. The structures sustained about $2 million in damages.

“We got back damage reports for the gym and the multipurpose room, and our estimate is that they can be open by September, 1995,” Shultze said.

In the meantime, school officials are trying to find alternative practice sites for Simi Valley High’s athletic teams and physical education classes. The basketball team will probably use the gym at either Royal High School or Apollo Continuation School, Shultze said.

The district is also looking into using facilities at Moorpark College and the Simi Valley Parks and Recreation District, Shultze said.