MILTON, W.Va. (AP) - Construction is set to begin later this month to rehabilitate the vacant Morris Memorial Hospital into a 100-room hotel, Milton officials said Wednesday.
The project will be part of a public-private partnership with Jeff and Patricia Hoops and the Hoops family in an economic and community development plan, said Rodney Pell, director of planning and development for the city of Milton.
Pell said in 2009 Milton Mayor Tom Canterbury made his vision known to rehabilitate the historic hospital into a vital and vibrant addition to the city.
The hospital, built in 1936, served as a polio hospital and then a nursing home until 2009 and has since been vacant, vandalized and deteriorating.
“Mayor Canterbury established a Department of Planning and Development in 2017 to help move this vision forward,” Pell said.
He said the Hoops family plans to transform the dormant, 88,000-square-foot structure into a grand hotel, while simultaneously honoring its storied history. The greenery and rolling land surrounding the historic Morris Memorial building in Milton has long been lauded for its beauty.
Pell said the preliminary plans include a 100-room hotel with additional extended-stay suites, indoor/outdoor pool facilities, grand ballroom and conference center, a 250-seat wedding chapel, a gym and workout facility, a medical clinic and physical rehab center, a restaurant, a grand fountain in front of the hotel, youth and adult baseball fields, youth and adult softball fields, soccer fields, an activity complex and trails, an amphitheater, a nine-hole par-3 golf course, stables and horse trails, townhomes and public access to all facilities.
“Phase one will be 120 to 123 acres developed,” Pell said. “Additionally, the Hoopses’ preliminary plans include multiple community-centric facilities, which provide a thematic design to enhance the entire 189 acres of undeveloped land.”
Pell said the Hoops family will serve as the property developer for the entire project.
“This will ensure that any entity that builds on the property does so in a manner which maintains the overall vision as set forth by the city of Milton,” he said.
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Information from: The Herald-Dispatch, https://www.herald-dispatch.com
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