The Prince Hall Masonic Temple, a historic building on North Boulevard, is being renovated to accommodate 46 mixed-income housing units.
Mayor Sharon Weston Broome’s administration announced the development on Monday. The project is one of six affordable housing developments currently underway across Baton Rouge, according to the mayor’s office.
Some $2 million in Emergency Rental Assistance Program dollars have been dedicated to the project. A project timeline has yet to be announced.
“Affordable housing provides security and opportunity for families and individuals and helps reduce poverty,” a statement from Broome reads. “It supports healthier communities and allows people to invest in the future.”
Constructed in 1924, the Prince Hall Masonic Temple has been described as a “centerpiece of African American culture in Baton Rouge.”
The building housed the Temple Roof Garden and the Temple Theater, venues popular among local youth clubs. In its heyday in the 1930s and ‘40s, the building hosted legendary performers like Louis Armstrong, Cab Calloway and Duke Ellington.
The Prince Hall Masonic Temple was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.
