Finley Gym reopens, more planned improvements to come

Shaye Lee (left) and Bree Wheeler review some future plans for youth sports.
Russell Huffman | El Defensor Chieftain

After a three-year hiatus, Socorro’s Finley Gym is back in action following a $1.2-million-dollar upgrade of everything from seating to air conditioning, and there’s still $1 million in capital outlay funds dedicated toward finishing the project.

Socorro recreation facilitator Shaye Lee and her staff welcomed the public on July 5 with a grand reopening. Attendees found out the newly installed air conditioning is going to be a match for hot summer days, and there are new bathrooms, offices, trophy, revamped floors, cushioned walls and new seating.

After closing because of COVID and immediately launching the project, Lee faces starting some programs from scratch.

“There’s open gym every day from noon to 7. There are times specifically for seniors from 8:30 to 11 in the morning,” Lee said. “Then there’ll be basketball games here whenever the Little League does their deal. Volleyball will be available here at some point. We want to look at trying to bring it back. There are going to be different classes. We’re going to coordinate with yoga instructors. Yesterday, I got a call about somebody wanting to do boxing classes, so things like that.”

Finley Gym isn’t Lee’s only focus.

“We’ve been doing all the youth sports. Bree (Wheeler) has been working hard on baseball. We contracted her dad out for baseball and Marcella Alvarado for adult softball this year. We had to clean up and get everything ready in here. Then there was getting the swimming pool up and running,” Lee said.

Lee refers to Wheeler as her “right-hand man,” and she’s looking to create a great experience for gym attendees.

“I think Socorro needs a lot of the stuff for the youth, and I hope that’s something that people understand is that we are here for the youth. That Finley is a place for the youth, the gym, the workout room and youth sports,” Wheeler said. “Obviously, I would like people to go out and let people know that we’re here for them and for the community. I think reopening Finley is a good opportunity for people to come in and understand that.”

According to city finance director Ruby Lopez, another $1 million had been dedicated to the Finley Gym. Still, the plans for spending the money have yet to be finalized.

“We did get another million dollars coming up for fiscal year 2024,” Lopez said. “We’ll be getting a million dollars to be able to do Finley Gym, but there’s a committee that’s going to decide how to spend it first.”