With temperatures outside firmly planted below freezing, active-minded people may find trouble staying in shape without becoming a popsicle.

Luckily, the city of Troy has a solution. And what’s more, it has had it since 2009.

The Troy Activities Center, a $1.2 million building used primarily for Troy High School athletics, sits on Fourth Street and has treasures for those who know to look for them.

Two pristine racquetball courts are in the back of the building and are available to the public. Interested ball players need only go to the Troy School District office and ask for the keycode for the electronic lock at the back of the building.

The cost of admission is donation only, but $2 an hour per person is recommended for facility costs and maintenance. 

The same code can be used for walkers in the morning who don’t feel like braving the cold. Basketball players can use the court during open gym, and rock climbers can use the three-story climbing wall – if they have the proper certification.

“When it opened up, one of the selling points was it was the Troy Activities Center, not the Troy Schools Center,” said Dan Wendt, superintendent of the Troy School District. “It’s for the community. We want it used.”

Built by Swank Enterprises, the activities center was opened in 2009 under the watch of former superintendent Brady Selle. The prospect of a safe place for the community’s young people to expend energy was a popular one.

“To have a multi-use facility like this affords so many opportunities to kids and the community,” Selle said. 

The state fronted half the cost of the facility, and many donors helped Troy with the cost of building the center. Revett Minerals, Inc., donated the $125,000 hardwood basketball floor, anonymous donors gave $30,000 for each racquetball court and $45,000 for scoreboards and backboards. Tyann Hermes, local rock-climbing group leader, reached out to the community to help finance the $60,000 climbing wall. Even the Troy boosters kicked in $3,500 for the scorers’ table.

Four years later, the stands still rock at home basketball games and the facility looks near pristine from inside and outside. It makes an inviting escape from the winter chills.