Millenium High School students and Councilmember Alan Gerson held a rally outside the school Wednesday to protest the lack of a gymnasium.
Downtown politicians and parents have been fighting for the gym for years, and with rising construction costs, officials now need an additional $1.5 million to build a gym in Millennium on the top floor of the 75 Broad St. building. Gerson plans to lobby the Department of Education, the mayor’s office and the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation for the money.
These funds will supplement money that the school has already received for the gym, from sources such as Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver through the state. The state has already given the school $750,000 for the project, and the city has given about $350,000.
“I went to public schools all my life, and I always had a gym,” Gerson said. “Even though I wasn’t a star athlete, it was a big part of my development.”
Student athletes who were at the rally said that not having a gym space has hindered their ability to practice regularly.
Ateman Perez, a starting pitcher for the baseball club who was dressed in his white uniform during the event, said that his group only gets to practice two or three times a week. He said that sometimes they go over to F.D.R. field, but much of the time it is taken up by teams who have permits to be there.
“If we could get a gym, we could practice. We could do positioning there,” Perez said. “Baseball isn’t just about hitting. We could do exercises.”
Other students said that the lack of gym space has caused them to have crowded gym classes, which they are required to take every semester from the time they are freshmen.
Maya Jack, a student council member and a member of the gym task force at Millenium High, said that during gym class, students spend much of their time in the overcrowded multi purpose or fitness rooms.
Brian Sachs, the school’s athletic director, said that teaching gym right now is difficult because the space he is using is not large enough for 65 kids. He has tried to hold classes in other places, such as the auditorium and the park, but they are often being used for other purposes. He also breaks students up into thirds to participate in activities such as floor hockey and soccer, which means each one gets to play for about fifteen minutes.
“Most 14-year-olds don’t want to be in the fitness center on the treadmill,” Sachs said. “They want to run around.”
— Laura Latzko
