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Vallejo gets ‘positive news’ with new gym
People gathered for the opening ceremony of the new $15 million Griffin Technology Academy gym facility on Wednesday in Vallejo. (Chris Riley/Times-Herald)
View Article from Vallejo Times-Herald
By Thomas Gase | tgase@timesheraldonline.com | Vallejo Times Herald
PUBLISHED:
Sometimes an address perfectly describes the venue.
Such was the case at Wednesday’s celebration of the hard grand opening of the Griffin Technology Academy Gymnasium.
“The name alone of this place is a labor of love. I mean, One Positive Place?” said longtime Vallejo educator Joe Jones. “This is a labor of love for kids, for Vallejo, and all of Vallejo celebrating a grand opening.”
Jones and others were on hand to mark the occasion for the GTA gymnasium, which will house the four schools in the area along with the Boys and Girls Omega Club. The four schools consist of: Mare Island Technology Academy, MIT Academy, MIT Griffin Academy Middle School and Griffin Academy High School. After dignitaries gave speeches, a ribbon was cut to signify the opening.
Jones described how far GTA has come since it only had 56 students and operated out of a Safeway store on Amador Street 25 years ago. He said GTA is hoping to have a campus across the street from the gym in the future, although a date is unknown for that venue.
“We dreamed of having a campus and all our board members dreamed of having a campus but we weren’t able to make it happen,” Jones said. “It was a labor of love that made this happen. We challenged the city, we challenged the state and the federal government to let them know our community could do something like this. It’s just the beginning of another phase of where we intend to go.”
An exuberant Shawna Gilroy, Vallejo Chamber President and CEO and GTA Board Chairperson, said the achievement was well worth the wait.
“Those of you who have followed MIT for a long time know how long this project has been in the making and for it to finally be here and have something completed that you can walk inside, take a picture of and stand and jump up and down and scream and shout,” Gilroy said while raising her hands. “It’s such an exciting feeling to be able to give this opportunity to our students at all four of all schools as well the entire community.”
Superintendent of Griffin Technology Academies Nick Driver said the venue cost $16 million to make. Half of that amount came from a Proposition 51 grant, while the other half comes from a loan with 2.35 interest over 30 years.
“The excitement level has been growing for this place ever since we had our first groundbreaking a little over a year ago,” Driver said. “What is very cool about this place is that it is close to a few of our schools, so each day students and faculty have been able to see the venue grow and bring us closer to a finished product.”
The event came about a year after Griffin Technology Academies announced it had received approval from the Vallejo City Unified School District and signed a construction contract with a local general contractor.
The construction of the new gym at Mare Island Technology Academy, a 6-12th grade set of schools, replaces the former Omega Boys and Girls Club gymnasium, a building that was condemned and given an eviction notice as an “unsafe building” eight years ago.
Educator Joe Jones talks about how important it is to have a place like the new $15 million Griffin Technology Academy gym facility for the kids during the opening ceremony on Wednesday in Vallejo. (Chris Riley/Times-Herald)
Griffin Technology Academy received initial state funding from the state Office of Public School Construction more than six years ago, money that enabled the school administration to go through the approval processes that resulted in final OPSC project approval about 15 months ago. The academy then worked closely with its landlord, the school district, to gain the required local approval.
That approval was granted at a district board meeting in July of 2024, allowing GTA to sign a contract with local general contractor BHM Construction, the lowest bidder in the required public bidding process that was completed in June of that same year. BHM is also contracted to rebuild the entire Mare Island Technology Academy campus, once the district grants that approval later this year.
“We are excited to partner with GTA to build a new gymnasium for Vallejo students,” said BHM Construction CEO Jeffery Mazet said in August of 2024. “We were attracted to bid on this project because of the need for new construction in Vallejo, and GTA’s commitment to building with local unionized labor.”Dignitaries walking into the new venue on Wednesday looked on in awe. Thoughts inevitably turned to Omega Boys & Girls Club founder Philmore Graham, who built Omega from its humble beginnings in 1966 with five boys in his garage. He helped the community the rest of his life until his death in 2014.
Philmore Graham - CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
“When I walked in here today I was really blown away,” said Mel Orpilla, who spoke on behalf of U.S. Rep. John Garamendi during the ribbon-cutting ceremony. “To me this is sacred ground. Not just for North Vallejo, but all of Vallejo. I can feel Philmore Graham’s spirit when I’m in here. We thank Philmore for the beginnings of these projects. I feel so proud to be here and see what’s here today.”
Clarence Turner, the Secretary of the Omega Boys and Girls Club, also felt Graham’s presence on Wednesday.
“I stand here today as an example of what Philmore Graham meant to me,” Turner said. “He was one of the few people I’ve met that I say that my only regret is that I didn’t meet them 20 years earlier. He had a vision and so many of us fed off his energy. At first I was the guy that fixed the plumbing and did all the repairs and dug holes. I chose that because I thought that was where I needed. But this club was blood and sweat for me. I gave all that I had to make our community a better place so we didn’t have to visit kids in prison.”
Driver said that a soft opening took place about two weeks ago and that the girls volleyball team at Griffin had already played a few games at the venue. Chairs were on the sideline for the ribbon cutting on Wednesday, but Driver said those will be replaced by bleachers in about a month’s time. The venue also holds a few classrooms and offices for faculty.