PITTSFIELD — School was out Thursday for New Year's Day, but those hoping to sled or have a snowball fight were stopped cold by a wind chill of minus 3 degrees.

But there was plenty to do indoors at the Tyler Street Arcade and Ready Set Play in Pittsfield.

"There's so much more room for growth within the adolescent entertainment market, especially within Berkshire County," said Robert Williams, the general manager for Tyler Street Arcade at 214 Tyler St. It and Ready Set Play, located at 675 Merrill Road, are entertainment spaces aimed at children.

"Obviously there is a need for any family entertainment that people would be willing to bring in," said Melissa Fawcett, the owner of Ready Set Play.

Pete Haven said his kids don't hate the 15-degree weather, but their energy and time spent being active lasts about 15 minutes.

Haven said his kids love Ready Set Play. "They're tired enough to go to bed without a problem," he said while watching them run around the space on Thursday.

Ready Set Play owner Melissa Fawcett noticed a lack of indoor spaces for kids, so she made one.

Veronica Mercier said she wanted to see "more places for birthday parties ... maybe more like kid friendly bowling" to bring her kids to on cold days.

"On days like today where your kids aren't in school and you want an activity for them to do, is it a struggle to find something aside from this place or at home," said Pete Haven, a parent at Ready Set Play.

"When our kids were younger, we were always traveling to either Crossgates [Mall] or Holyoke to find kind of an indoor entertainment space to take our kids," she said.

Fawcett said winter brings in more business than the warmer months.

"During the winter season, it's definitely hard to find things to do indoors for them," said Veronica Mercier. "This is pretty much the only place. Even the museum right now is under construction, so we can't even go there."

This sentiment is felt across Berkshire County, Williams said, with the arcade seeing visitors from Southern County and North Adams.

"It seems like people wanted this place to be open," he said. "They wanted some sort of indoor activities station in the Berkshires."

Although they provide a great alternative, indoor spaces often come with an added pressure many outdoor activities don't have: a price to play.

"The more the merrier for spaces for children," said Melissa Fawcett, the owner of Ready Set Play. "I definitely think the Berkshires is lacking in child-centered activities."

"You gotta weigh it out," Mercier said. "It's like a little treat."

A daily ticket at Ready Set Play is $17.95 per child ages 1-17 and $3.95 for adults under the age of 60. Infants and seniors get in for free.

At the arcade, Williams keeps prices as low as possible, with no game costing more than $1 to play.

"It's not gonna cost to you a million dollars," said Robert Williams, the Tyler Street Arcade's general manager. The space is great for "killing time. You come in to warm up when you're cold and don't want to be in the house for a little while."

Still, parents are grateful to have the space, Williams said.

Fawcett said there is still room for more indoor spaces, especially for older teens, a group her business isn't aimed at.

"A lot of the things that we hear around here are, 'It'd be nice to have a Dave & Buster's or like a roller skating rink,'" Fawcett said. "And I think all of those would be really ... a great addition in Berkshire County."