WESTON LUNATIC ASYLUM COULD BE DEVELOPED

(08/04/2008)

The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, later known as Weston State Hospital, could be renovated during the next few years.

Plans are afoot to turn the main building into a combination of museums.

When that is finished, the current owners plan to turn an adjacent building into a hotel and possibly add a casino, restaurant, and shops.

"We'd be looking for a hotel chain that would be interested in saving one of these structures and make it into a hotel. It would obviously benefit the tourists and people that would come here and spend money in Lewis County," says Edward Gleason, TALA's director of grants and development.

Gleason says the hotel project is still three to five years away.

Protests have appeared regarding the use of the former name of the facility - "lunatic."