Conversion of former Whitman church about to begin

The transformation of the former First Baptist Church of Whitman into a 15-unit apartment building is set to begin in about two weeks.

We have been doing a lot of demolition work to get ready for construction, said Richard Rosen, owner of Rosen Realty in Whitman. He bought the 190-year-old town centerpiece for $200,000 about a year ago and won the approval of the towns zoning board to covert the building.

The congregation closed its doors in 2009 after membership in the church dwindled. Rosen was chosen to market the building for sale. The church corporation sold the deed to American Baptist Churches of Massachusetts. That group sold to Rosen after other potential buyers fell through.

The town considered buying the old church and turning it into a senior center but town officials decided the renovation would be too costly.

The assessed value of the 12,000-square-foot building is about $287,900.

Rosen said he has already received calls from prospective tenants who are attracted to it because of the buildings central location in Whitman.

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Conversion of former Whitman church about to begin