An anti-religion foundation pursuing social reform could demolish an apartment building in the Mifflin neighborhood this fall in order to expand its national offices, located in Madison.
The Freedom from Religion Foundation advocates for widespread moral and social progress by rejecting religion and emphasizing the separation of church and state, according to their website.
FFRF members are in the process of buying and tearing down two downtown apartment buildings, located at 10 and 12 N. Henry St., which would make room for additional offices, storage and meeting space constructed adjacent to their main office, Freethought Hall.
Bill Montelbano, the architect of the project, presented plans for the development at a Mifflin Neighborhood meeting Monday, which include turning several parking spaces into a landscaped courtyard and restoring the original stone on the more than 100 year old Freethought Hall.
According to Montelbano, developers were unsure restoration would be possible after a community member suggested trying to preserve the original stone at a previous meeting, but he is confident now that it will work because of the quality of the brick he surveyed after removing a section of the “stucco” shielding it.
In response to a question from the UW-Madison Atheists, Humanists and Agnostics organization president, Quinn Heck, FFRF co-founder and current co-president, Annie Laurie Gaylor, said at the meeting they would be open to the idea of allowing AHA the to use the proposed new meeting hall.
Construction is expected to begin in August or September if the development passes the Urban Design Commission on March 20 and the Plan Commission on April 8.
