Hutter Gymnasium was a state-of-the-art gymnasium in 1970 when it began hosting Augusta High School athletics and activities.
As time marched on, many of the amenities of the building started to become more of a burden than a comfort.
If the bond issue asked for by the USD 402 Board passes, then the main focus on the athletic side of improving facilities will be to give the high school gymnasium a new look inside in order to make things more comfortable for those who use or attend events in the nearly 40-year-old facility.
The main plans for improving Hutter include a heating/air conditioning system to replace the current one; to build a new floor, which would have to happen if the new HVAC system was placed; and to get new upper level bleachers.
“We think the gym gets a lot of use,” said School Superintendent Jim Lentz. “When they built the gym, they didn’t play girls volleyball and girls basketball. There’s also a safety issue when we have lockdown issues. You can’t lock down the gym because a door is open to get air when it’s 100 degrees in there.
“If you walk on that gym floor, there are some real issues. That floor needs to be replaced. And I think those bleachers are a safety hazard. I’d think I’d be scared to death if my kids were running up or down those bleachers.”
It is used for at least 18 events involving Augusta Orioles’ sports programs; practices for volleyball, basketball, as well as the indoor facility for spring sports practices. Little league basketball and wrestling, Mid-America Youth Basketball, and community volleyball and dodgeball tournaments also use Hutter for practices and games.
Many band and cheerleading clinics and competitions are conducted at the gymnasium, including Bandorama. Pep rallies, the American Red Cross blood drive, and SADD Summits are also there; as well as physical education classes.
Hutter Gymnasium is not the only school sports facility that would be helped if the bond issue passes.
Hillier Stadium will add concession and restroom facilities at the southwest corner of the stadium, and an expanded press box that would have better facilities for coaches, media and school staff. Restroom facilities would also be built at the baseball facility.

“It’s a quality facility, but we need to do a couple of things to it and I think it’s time to get it updated,” Lynch said about Hillier Stadium. “If you’re disabled or elderly, our stadium doesn’t have the most convenient way to get down to the (current) restroom and concession areas. We feel like if we have the new area, that would be the primary area and it needs to happen.

“And with the press box, the visiting coaches have to sit underneath (the announcers and statisticians) and the building itself has been attacked by termites. It’s not a good situation.”

Augusta Middle School would get a second gymnasium to help with not only physical education classes, but also with allowing all of the Bluejays sports teams to play at the facility. In basketball, only one of the two B-squad teams play at the AMS Events Center because it’s the only gym at the school.

“We were in the forefront when it comes to building middle schools,” said Augusta High and Augusta Middle School athletic director Doug Law. “Now other school systems are building new middle schools with two gymnasiums and we need to catch up.

“Also, at any time, we can have 25 male students and 25 female students taking physical education; that’s 50 kids taking class in one gym. It’s not only an athletic thing, but also a curricular thing to have the room for all those kids.”