BUFFALO, N.Y. — BUFFALO, N.Y. -- On this Martin Luther King Junior Day, Empire State Development revealed plans for the next phase of construction at the historic Michigan Street Baptist Church in Buffalo.
Phase 1, which included stabilizing the building, is over with. Phase 2, which will cost more than $2-million, gets underway this year.
It includes a lot, perhaps most notably a two-story addition to allow better access for people with disabilities and work to restore the floors and pews inside the church.
"The next time you step in the church, carpet will be gone, the floors will be refurbished, the walls will be painted, and we will also build more pews based on one original that we happen to have in the lower level of the church. The paneling will be off the foyer," said Lillie Wiley-Upshaw, Chair of the Buffalo Niagara Freedom Station Coalition.
The Buffalo Niagara Freedom Station Coalition has been working for years to restore the Michigan Street Baptist Church as it was an important stop along the underground railroad. The goal is to make the corridor a tourism and economic hub.
They also want to search for more artifacts.
"We've done a preliminary dig with the University at Buffalo, and we found quite a bit of artifacts, and we're now in the process of raising funds to do a full dig, excavate the parking lot, so we can dig up the foundation of Mary Talbert's home and also continue to dig up the entire green space. We believe that there is more history that we have yet to uncover," said Lillie Wiley-Upshaw.
There is also a plan to paint a big mural on a wall facing a community garden next to the proposed addition to the church, with a large green space behind the church.
Construction on Phase 2 is expected to start in late spring or this summer.