Rehabbed community center a welcome for residents

COHOES, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- When the Cohoes Community Center shut down, it left many residents without programs and recreational activities. On Friday, it reopened under a new name and owner.

The center's undergone a massive renovation now called the Gateway Sports Complex.

"I really didn't expect it to be this nice. I thought some slaps of paint and a machine here or there, but the whole place is transformed," said Robin Zapala after she toured the facility.

The building was sold to Craig Roochand earlier this year.

This is not Roochand's first venture. He owns other recreational facilities in New York City.

"It was a challenge. I got the keys in my hand  The last week of January. We started construction the first week of February, and what I estimated what it would take to get this building completed, my budget went three or four times over the amount," Roochand said.

Roochand said the former community center came with list of issues including plumbing and heating repairs which led to the community center's initial shut down.

Roochand said COVID-19 hasn't made the opening process easier.

"They said 33 percent [to reopen] for sports, so it's going to be challenging." Roochand said.

The center is open from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week.

LATEST STORIES

• Male injured in State Street shooting in Schenectady
• Fossils thought to be hundreds of millions of years old found at Pennsylvania landfill
• History in Bronze: The Statues of Washington Park
• GOP expecting Trump to name Amy Coney Barrett to Supreme Court
• HHS secretary touts Trump's health care plan while Democrats say there’s nothing in it