Georgia’s Stegeman Coliseum will remain closed for repairs for several more months and into the new academic year but school officials said Thursday they expect it to be open in time for the men’s and women’s basketball seasons that tip off in November. Volleyball’s home schedule will be moved to Ramsey Center, where the team played until 2017.

Stegeman Coliseum, built in 1964 , has been shuttered for the past seven weeks since a small piece of material from the ceiling was found on March 2 to have fallen. That was described as the largest of at least three pieces of ceiling to fall since spring 2018 from a roof that was last replaced in 2008.

Engineering reports called the issue “concrete spalling” or chipping.

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UGA said Wednesday fixes include construction crews sawing cut relief joints at the precast corners of the roof and installing a protective mesh to keep future chipping from reaching the coliseum floor. Scaffolding has already been installed inside the coliseum which features two concrete arches supporting the roof structure. That mesh will be made of high density polyethylene that attaches at the bottom, according to Gwynne Darden, a UGA associate vice president and university architect.

“We are doing all the recommendations,” she said.

A new 33-page engineering peer review report by Walter P. Moore and Associates affirmed "there is no indication of structural deficiencies in the roof structure that may lead to major failures or collapse."

It agreed with a previous report by Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates that thermal movement — the expanding and contraction of building materials — and “misalignment and tight precast joints from the original construction of the facility,” are the primary factors that led to the recent incidents of chipping. Cracks in the roof, about 185 feet above the court, measured up to 1/32 of an inch wide.

A “global analysis,” of the roof will be completed over the summer to determine the structural impact of the addition in 2010 of glass curtain walls that fully enclosed the northeast and southwest concourses and added an upgraded HVAC system and whether the installation of a central scoreboard in 2017 also contributed to the spalling.

The Moore report determined that roof leakage, corrosion of embedded steel, concrete materials and sound system vibrations were not primary contributors to the stresses in the roof structure. The vibrations, however, could potentially dislodge pre-existing spalls created by other causes.

Athletic director Josh Brooks said UGA is "pleased with the solution that has been identified by these structural engineering firms, who are leaders in the coliseum industry. We are going to be able to reopen Stegeman Coliseum safely for our teams and fans this fall, and over the summer, we will begin the planning process for further ways to modernize the facility and substantially enhance the fan and student-athlete experience.”

Brooks said Georgia plans to remove that central scoreboard and add a large video board to the end of the coliseum that currently features graphics of former Bulldog athletes. That won't happen this year.

“I want to build an enormous video board," he said.

Brooks said the cost of the fixes to Stegeman Coliseum will be in the "seven figures," but he was not more specific.

Building a new basketball arena is a frequent question, but Brooks said it would cost more than $200 million and there are no plans for that. Darden said it's possible Stegeman could have "another 50 years of life left."

Brooks said: "“I think it’s got great bones that we can continue to work with.”

Before the next basketball seasons, the Stegeman Coliseum roof will be painted a darker color that will "help modernize the look," Brooks said, similar to State Farm Arena in Atlanta and Madison Square Garden in New York.

In the short term, he's also eyeing more lighting effects such as red lights like in Sanford Stadium. The reconfigured seating for men's basketball is still "a full go," for the coming season, but not new premium seating.

The gymnastics team, which had its final two regular season home meets, relocated to Duluth, is expected to also be able to return to Stegeman for its 2024 season.

The closing of Stegeman Coliseum also impacted UGA and local high school graduate ceremonies and has been unavailable for other uses including Georgia football hosting a coaches clinic there. Summer sports team and individual camps also won’t be able to be held in the coliseum.

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: UGA outlines fixes to Stegeman Coliseum, gives timeline on opening