Roof Repair to Begin at UConn's Gampel Pavilion

By Chris Dehnel

STORRS, CT - A $10 million project to replace the aging, peeling domed roof at Gampel Pavilion should begin this spring. The timetable to fix the hoop home of the Huskies was approved by the University of Connecticut board of trustees on Wednesday. Work should begin in May and be done in October, well before pre-season games are slated to begin for the UConn men's and women's teams. A bid package should go out next month, school officials said.

The price tag represents about a third of the original construction costs of the entire UConn sports complex when it was built in 1990, UConn Provost Mun Choi said in a project outline presented to the trustees.

Choi said the roof was “fairly innovative for its time” when designed a quarter-century ago.

The roof construction includes a triangular network of metal-clad panels with a fabric-wrapped insulated cover in the interior, according to a project outline. The fabric wrapping on the panels has begun to “degrade. Tear and flake,” because of age and temperature variations and high-density light exposure, Choi said. The silver insulation liner is becoming exposed and is visible in some spots, particularly on the lower third portion of the dome, Choi said.

On the outside, the sealant on the dome is starting to “degrade” and water leaks have “become more common,” Choi said.

UConn commissioned an independent engineering study and the recommendation was to remove the interior fabric and insulation, “recover” the panels and replace them piece-by-piece Choi said.

On the outside, the work will include installing a new code-compliant tie-off and access system in the roof and then reseal the entire exterior, Choi said.

Engineers will also be examining “other high-priority aging conditions of the building," Choi said, including addressing electric panels under the seating areas that are not code-compliant, upgrading the satellite hook-up system and repair or replace the retractable courtside seating, Choi said.

The project should add 10 to 15 years to the life of the building, Choi said.

The project, which should add 10 to 15 years to the life of the building, coincides with a $546,000 project to replace the lights inside Gampel. The work is designed to cut the arena’s energy use by 75 percent and shrink operating and maintenance costs for the lights there by 80 percent, UConn officials have said. The new high-efficiency LED fixtures will have a much longer life span than the old lights and will not need to be replaced for 10 years, UConn officials have said. The lights will be controlled remotely, which will also reduce energy and labor costs, UConn officials have said.

Photo credit: eric via flickr creative commons