Madison’s Plan Commission approved a construction proposal at a meeting Monday that calls for the demolition of the historic Stadium Bar in order to build an apartment complex.
The proposal would tear down Stadium Bar, located at 1419 Monroe St., to construct a six-story building, which would include commercial space and 72 housing units.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison Police Department expressed concerns about the construction site’s proximity to the UWPD station.
“We want to continue to have a dialogue with the developer on issues from everything related to the parking lot around the building to how we unload prisoners nearby,” UWPD Captain Steven Rogers said. “We cannot, at this point, support this [project], but we do hope to be able to work things out.”
Ald. Shiva Bidar-Sielaff, District 5, urged committee members to support the proposal despite UWPD’s concerns.
“I do not think their issues rise to a level that requires this application to be referred,” she said. “I think some of the issues are being pursued as being bigger than they actually are.”
Bidar-Sielaff also addressed past opposition from students and alumni over the “loss” of Stadium Bar, but said she supports the proposal because the bar will retain its legacy.
“Memories stay with people forever, even when the building and the site are gone,” Bidar-Sielaff said.
The Plan Commission gave preliminary approval of the proposal on the condition of determining how to use the parking lot at a later date.
A second proposal from the Freedom from Religion Foundation calls for the demolition of two apartment buildings, located at 10 and 12 N. Henry St., to make room for an expansion to its offices.
Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, supported the project and reminded commission members of the FFRF’s willingness to work with community members throughout the design approval process. He asked the plan commission to consider FFRF’s cooperation in their deliberation of the proposal.
“The FFRF representatives have attended multiple neighborhood meetings, so they went through the entire neighborhood process and did very well,” Verveer said. “They were frequent visitors to the UDC and they took to heart all the advice they were given.”
The Plan Commission unanimously approved the project.
