After a year of planning, and another year of construction, Charlotte Amalie High School students and staff proudly unveiled Friday the school’s new athletic weightroom and lockerrooms, complete with energy efficent equipment.

The project spearheaded by the Education Department was funded through bond proceeds initially set aside for gym repairs. At a brief ceremony on the school’s campus Friday, CAHS Principal Carmen Howell said leftover money, approximately $500,000, went to the weightroom and lockerroom upgrades, which she said were much needed.

Howell said the athletic lockerrooms were previously in a state of disrepair and were “embarrasing” for students, especially when visiting teams played at CAHS for tournaments and other events. Appealing to CAHS athletes present for the ceremony Friday, Howell added that it is now up to the students to take care of the new facilities – particularly the female lockerroom, whose walls had been littered with writing.

Speaking during the ceremony, CAHS junior Avery Joseph said that neither lockerroom ever had working showers, but the new upgrades will give students the chance to at least wash off after practice or gym class.

The male and female lockerrooms now have fresh yellow paint on the walls, bright blue lockers and energy efficient lighting, toilets and sinks.

Thomas Brutvan, CAHS’ physical education chairman, gave faculty and staff a tour of the new weightroom, which was air-conditioned, padded with rubber flooring and stocked with new equipment paid for by approximately $10,000 in federal funds.

St. Thomas-St. John Deputy Superintendent Joseph Sibilly said that Education will be looking at other areas in need of repairs on campus, including the school’s bleachers, which are built into the hillside overlooking the track.