Titans Gymnastics Club getting ready to move into new home

It's been a long time coming, but after more than 10 years of saving and planning, Titans Gymnastics Club will soon have its new home.

The prefabricated building arrived March 6 and according to head coach Susan Gallagher, they will be able to start their summer camps in the new gym on July 2.

"There's been a lot of sweat to make this happen, so it's going to be pretty exciting when we open the door," said Gallagher.

The cost for the new 16,000 sq.-ft. complex, which is located behind their present facility on Broom Road in Dartmouth, will be about $1.7 million.

The provincial government pitched in $90,000 and they got another $346,000 from ACOA, but the rest was raised on our own.

The money was raised through membership fees, fundraisers and birthday parties.

The facility will have two full 42 by 42 square foot floors, which Gallagher says will give the gymnasts a huge advantage.

"There will be so much more room for the recreational kids, as well as the competitive. We hope to expand to give other community groups more time. We are asked so often about floor time, but because we only had one floor, that was the best we could do."

It will also have offices, bathrooms/change rooms, and an upper floor that runs the length of the gym for viewing.

At some point Gallagher said they plan to put in community rooms, like they have at Cole Harbour Place, but don't have the funding to do it right now.

"It's one step at a time," she said.

The new facility also has a place for the much-anticipated foam pit built in, but that too will have to wait.

"It's another $50,000. It costs a lot of money to fill it with foam, so that's a work in progress. We'll definitely be fundraising to get that pit in as soon as we can."

The new Titans facility, which will be the biggest gym of its kind in eastern Canada, will also be temperature controlled, a luxury for the the gymnasts.

"We'll have air conditioning in the summer, as opposed to training in 34 degrees and having the summer camp in that kind of heat, so its going to be very exciting," said Gallagher. "There's no other gym in Atlantic Canada that is temperature controlled."

This year's membership came in at around 1,150. That number will likely increase to 1,300 by the end of the summer camps, so there's a lot going on at the gym.

"We always did host some really nice big meets, but it was really too small. Parents pay a lot of money to bring their kids to meets, and we did the best we could, but now we'll be able to do it in grand style like we'd like to."

The new facility was originally scheduled to open in the summer of 2008, in time for the club's 40th anniversary, but Gallagher said there was always something holding them back.

"Every year we thought it would be in, but because of some red tape ... it was always something."

Problems with the sewage location, which had to be moved, added extra costs as they had to change the drawings and hire a lawyer.

After that was worked out, the foundation, septic and water were all completed last fall, but the prefabricated building couldn't be delivered until last month.

"Ten years ago we figured it would cost us $500,000, but because of the time it has taken to get through some of these major hurdles, it's ended up costing a lot more. I realize it's not finished yet, but with a lot of perseverance, we're really hopeful it'll come together."

According to Byron Topp, president of the board at Titans, the membership is thrilled.

"This is something we've been talking about for many, many years. To actually see this come to fruition is a thrill for the staff and all the club members. In fact, we've had many requests from ex-members as to when the grand opening will be because they all want to be a part of it. This has always been a part of the club: this move to construct a new building."

The official finished date for construction is May 15.

u150' X 110' total building footprint (16,500 sq feet)

u150' X 90' gym floor with trampoline/foam pit (13,500 sq feet)

u20' X 150' office, utility, changerooms, party room, storage on main floor (3,000 sq feet)

u20' X 150' upper floor viewing area (3,000 sq feet)