University Laboratory School students returned to a new campus gym yesterday, one year to the day that fire destroyed the building that housed the athletic, drama and music programs.

But while the recent opening of the gym marked another highlight in the school's recovery since the June 13, 2006, fire, officials say teachers and students are still suffering.

About 25 teachers still do not have classrooms, students continue to shuffle through makeshift classrooms in portable buildings, and equipment from buildings converted to classrooms sits in three temporary storage containers scattered throughout the campus.

"The students really only have a place to drop their books," said Don Young, dean of the University of Hawai'i's College of Education, which oversees the Lab School. "This situation really has a direct impact on the abilities of teachers," he said.

And the impact on the campus doesn't end there.

Final costs for all items purchased as a result of the fire, from gym equipment to books and instruments, will not be determined until the end of this month, Young said. The assessment will include irreplaceable items lost in the fire, such as costumes, composed music and files.

School officials have been working with the insurance company to assess costs for the overall damage, which fire officials estimated to be about $6.5 million. The final insurance settlement consists of the costs to rebuild the 67-year-old wooden structure and to assure it meets building code regulations, Young said.

The school held several fundraising events, including a concert at Andrews Amphitheater on the UH-Manoa campus in August. The event, featuring local entertainers, raised more than $30,000 to help cover the losses.

But the university's budget requests for replacement buildings during the last legislative session were not approved, officials said. UH requested $4.1 million for the planning and design of a bigger, better building in fiscal 2008 and $45 million for construction of the building in fiscal 2009.

Yesterday, the buzz on campus was all about the gym.

The gym sits in one of four double-portables brought to the campus in November, replacing less than half of the 20,000 square feet lost in the fire. A training room, physical education office and drama and other classrooms fill the remaining portables.

"I really can't wait for this gym to get crowded again," Lab School graduate Mitchell Chun said.

Chun, who used to work out in the original gym every day after class, lost a shirt and pair of shoes in the fire. He and others will continue to use the athletic facility as students of UH-Manoa.

"Right now, it's too clean for us," he said. "But it should smell like sweat in a couple of days."