Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.
A rendering of the proposed St. John's Lutheran Church redevelopment as seen from the corner of East Washington Avenue and North Hancock Street.
St. John’s Lutheran Church has refined plans for a roughly $35 million redevelopment of its Downtown property with a design that will feature stained glass on part of the first floor and prominent vertical columns defining nine stories of housing above.
The 10-story redevelopment, introduced in August, will include a new sanctuary, community spaces, offices and other amenities on the first floor, topped by 122 mostly lower-cost apartments with below-ground parking at 322 E. Washington Ave.
“St. John’s is excited to see this project nearing fruition and we’re looking forward to envisioning our new worship, vibrant community, and social ministry space, particularly how we integrate stained or colored glass into it to have a jewel box effect inside the building and to cast light out onto the sidewalks and streets at night,” the Rev. Peter Beeson said.
The 165-year-old congregation is partnering with Brad Binkowski — co-founder of Urban Land Interests — and his son, Mark, with support from ULI, which has done many Downtown projects.
“Our goal with the architecture for this project was to take some of the distinctive elements that have always provided churches, and St. John’s particularly, with their character and reinterpret them for the 21st century,” Mark Binkowski said.
The stained glass at the corner of St. John’s space at East Washington Avenue and North Hancock Street will add warmth and visual interest while providing an immediate cue that the space behind is a church, Binkowski said. The large, vertical columns that form the façade above St. John’s space at the corner are intended to recall the multi-story columns and flying buttresses that support old cathedrals, he said.
“Authentic, warm materials — stone and brick, stained glass, grand stairways to the main entrance, strong vertical elements — all of those things generally come to mind when people think of what makes a church,” he said. “Potter Lawson’s preliminary design incorporates those elements in unique ways that still fit within the context of a larger, mixed-use residential project.”
The design uses two different façade elements to break up the overall scale of the building, Binkowski said. The development team is still exploring ways to save and reuse stained glass from the existing church, he said.
Of the 122 housing units, about 85% will be set aside for those earning below 60% of Dane County median income, or $55,680 for a family of three, Binkowski said. The apartment mix includes studios, one- two- and three-bedroom units.
“To me, the most important facet of this project is not that we are building more apartments Downtown, but that we are building the first truly affordable housing project near the Capitol Square since the Madison Mark (132 E. Wilson St.) was completed around 2005,” he said.
The project will include a church sanctuary, worship, gathering and fellowship space, offices, kitchen, arts and crafts, music and community rooms, plus a total 4,050 square feet of space for nonprofit partners to deliver services, a courtyard and a green roof above part of the first floor of the L-shaped structure.
Ald. Patrick Heck, 2nd District, who represents the site, said neighbors remain concerned about the height that’s allowed along a part of East Washington Avenue that has smaller-scale homes behind it, but said he and residents are “enthusiastic about the prospect of a truly affordable housing development.”
Bob Klebba, chair of a neighborhood steering committee on the project, also said residents are excited about the affordable housing, but don’t like the shadows that will result from a tall building and have concerns about traffic. He applauded St. John’s for including the church and social service space in the proposal and for engaging neighbors early in the process.
The current St. John's Lutheran Church, built in 1905, is the third built for the congregation and second at its current site.
St. John’s is scheduled to make an informational presentation to the city’s Urban Design Commission at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.
“We have slowed down the project timeline a bit to more deliberately work with the neighborhood and other concerned stakeholders,” Binkowski said. The aim, he said, is to work through the city’s formal approval process next spring and submit to the city and county for affordable housing funds next summer.
The developers would then submit an application for critical tax credits administered by the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority in the fall of 2022 with the goal of starting construction in the spring or summer of 2023, he said.
Tiny shelters are constructed at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Workers construct Pallet shelters at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Tiny shelters are constructed at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Workers construct Pallet shelters at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Tiny shelters are constructed at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Brooke Peterson, an electrician in training with the city of Madison, works on electrical wiring inside a Pallet shelter at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Parts of Pallet shelters wait to be constructed at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Pallet shelters are constructed at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Workers construct Pallet shelters at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Workers construct Pallet shelters at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Volunteer Andy van Duym tightens bolts in a Pallet shelter, with Shannon McIntyre, at right, with Construction for Change, at the city's first sanctioned homeless encampment on the Southeast Side in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 1, 2021. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Madison has chosen operators for the city’s first sanctioned encampment for the homeless taking shape on a 1.8-acre site at 3202 Dairy Drive on the Southeast Side.
Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.
Dean Mosiman covers Madison city government for the Wisconsin State Journal.
Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
McGrath Property Group has submitted new plans for a 12-story project near Alliant Energy Center that razes the Coliseum Bar and Banquet but saves and relocates the historic Wonder Bar.
The use of the Madison Plaza Hotel, which owes $1.35 million in back taxes, to temporarily shelter the homeless has derailed a long-term plan to convert the hotel into permanent low-income housing.
Highs will be in the low 50s to start December for southern Wisconsin, about 15 degrees above normal, according to forecasters.
A developer is proposing a 12-story housing project with rooftop pool on a linear site across the Southwest Commuter Path and railroad tracks from Kohl Center.
JD McCormick Properties is proposing to demolish three buildings — two built in the late 1800s — on the 400 block of State Street to make way for a five-story building.
Four influential Downtown neighborhood associations are concerned a lack of affordability threatens the center city's vitality, enjoyability and have joined forces to push for low-cost units in new projects.
A developer is proposing to buy and demolish Northside Christian Assembly church for a $34.6 million, four-story building with 125 low-cost apartments.
A rendering of the proposed St. John's Lutheran Church redevelopment as seen from the corner of East Washington Avenue and North Hancock Street.
The current St. John's Lutheran Church, built in 1905, is the third built for the congregation and second at its current site.
Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.