Renovated castle in Wilmerding, Pa., will provide space for charter school

The Westinghouse Castle in Wilmerding, Pa., will be renovated to accommodate the arts program for a charter high school.

Once renovated, much of the 45,000-square-foot building will be used by the Westinghouse Arts Academy Charter School, reports the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The facility was the former general office of Westinghouse Air Brake Co. and was built in 1890 for George Westinghouse, an inventor and entrepreneur.

The renovation will outfit the building with a pottery studio, a maker space, a digital media production studio, digital editing and design labs, an eSports space and a cafeteria.

“Arts programs have been systematically cut from public schools for the past 50 years,” said Richard Fosbrink, CEO of the Westinghouse Arts Academy. “The restoration of the Westinghouse Castle will help us fill a need and offer students something they have been desperately looking for.”

The charter school’s main building, across a parking lot from the Westinghouse Castle, was built in 1936 and was once George Westinghouse Memorial High School.

The fourth floor will become an event center for weddings and special events.