Tuesday, May 19, 2015
Many who have lived or worked in Troy for a few decades think of the building at 3179 Livernois Road as the old Troy High School, and more recent arrivals may have no idea what the large building is. They might be surprised to learn that the Troy Community Center, located in the former Troy High School, offers all the following features:
- an aquatic area, with a lap pool, family play pool, and heated therapy pool;
- four aerobic and dance studios;
- a fitness center;
- banquet/meeting rooms;
- an arts & crafts room;
- Creative Endeavors, a boutique selling items made by senior artisans;
- a licensed preschool program;
- and the offices of the Troy Recreation Department.
The Troy Parks and Recreation Department opened today’s Troy Community Center at 3179 Livernois Road, in 2002. The Troy School Department sold the City of Troy the site, along with the old Troy High School building, for less than the open market value of the land.
In April 1999, Troy voters overwhelmingly approved a bond issue, which generated $12,000,000, to renovate the school into a multipurpose community center. The Troy Downtown Development Authority provided an additional $2,000,000, to allow completion of a project which, by then, had been expanded by the City Council, without a tax increase. Then Parks and Recreation Director Carol Anderson and Assistant City Manager Gary Shripka worked closely with architects Rossetti and Associates, and builders JM Olson.
Building renovation was completed in two phases, with program areas completed first, and meeting rooms and offices in Phase II. The 127,000 square foot facility now provides a wide variety of fitness, enrichment, education and recreation programs for people of all ages. Preferred pricing is available to individuals who live or work in Troy, but others may enjoy the facility, as well.
To commemorate the City of Troy’s 60th Anniversary in 2015, we will publish a different story each day that highlights a person, discovery, or event that occurred locally, regionally, nationally, or even globally between 1955 and 2015 and that helped shape our lives and our community. We will try to post stories on important anniversary dates, but we also realize that dates are less critical than content and context. We will include the facts related to controversial stories, allowing our readers to form their own opinions. We invite you to read and comment on the stories. Your suggestions for topics are also welcome and can be posted on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/TroyHistoricVillage. You can also email stories or ideas to the 365 Story Editor at ed@thvmail.org.
