After two months repairing water damage due to a flood, Basketball America is back up and running and, thanks to massive remodeling, it is better than ever.
On July 2 2011, after a water meter was installed to accommodate new technology for water readers, a gasket blew overnight causing most of the building’s floor to be under three inches of water. The damage was extensive, and covered most of the front and more than half of the hardwood. Despite this, Owner Jim Otto said there were never any plans to close.
“We opened in 1993, have been here 18 years and we’ve had a lot of kids go through here, grow up and come back,” said Otto. “You get to see how big they get, and a lot go on to play college ball. My daughter, for example, was three-years-old when we opened this place, and she went on to play at Rochester College for a number of years, and at 5′ 2” thats not too bad.
“The first thing we thought when we came in that morning and saw the water was we gotta get this place going again – there are too many people in the community that are here all the time supporting us.”
Damaged areas, and summarily the areas that are now remodeled, including the arcade room, most of the floors in the front of the building, walls in the building’s front and most of the hardwood which had become unstable due to the water damage. While the front area of the courts looks new, because of the type of wood, the court that was not replaced looks just as new thanks to a new buffing and lamination.
The bathrooms and party room has also been completely remodeled.
The main attraction of Basketball America, according to Otto, is not only basketball but volleyball. The facility accommodates leagues from the ages of four to forty-five, and above. Otto added he feels Basketball America performs a service by keeping kids out of trouble.
Otto added the building can be used for birthday parties, customers can reserve courts, simply use an open court, organize “lock-ins” and more. The arcade has a large number of machines to choose from and should patrons get hungry a full cafeteria is available.
“I like to eat,” said Otto. “So everything on this menu is something I like to eat, and it’s all good. We have good quality hamburgers, sliders, all good sizes, chicken sandwiches, we make our own pizzas, nachos, and more. We really have a choice for everyone.?
One of the last improvement added was free wifi – something Otto said was included so parents can work while their children are participating in events.
“Parents can bring their laptops or their iPads or whatever and be able to access the internet, because we have quite a few leagues and we know the parents are busy,” said Otto.
Basketball America is open from 9 a.m. to midnight everyday. Reduced rates for certain services are available after 9 p.m. They can be reached at 248-693-5858, or at bballamerica.com.