Notre Dame doesn't belong to the Catholic Church. It's been owned by the French state since 1789.

Since 1905 [1], though philosophically this law indeed takes its roots in the French revolution.

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1905_French_law_on_the_Separ...

Interestingly, Notre Dame's own Wikipedia entry states it was nationalized in 1789, with several laws passed since reaffirming it's status as owned by the state and (what I interpret to mean) loaned back to the Church.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notre-Dame_de_Paris#Ownership

Indeed I stand corrected. Interestingly, (most) ancient cathedral are owned by the state, while (most) other churches are owned by the cities.

I made a bit of research, and while the sources are somewhat contradictory - the article linked as a source by Wikipedia contradicts what is stated on Wikipedia! - my understanding is that you are correct: - nationalized in 1789 - the Concordat (Napoleon, 1801) confirms the state ownership, and usage is granted to the Church - a few laws in the 19th century states the state pays for the maintenance of the building - law in 1905 confirms (again) state ownership, usage assigned to the Church

the symbol is its association with the catholic church, as opposed to a government owned real estate.

Great. Let’s just tear things down because the mob has the wrong idea in their head. What could go wrong?

Also, the Catholic Church is a 2000 years old organization. There’s a lot more to it than the sex abuse scandals.

I was waiting for the inevitable "hur dur why are we spending money on this"

If it makes you feel any better the funds are probably going to come largely/entirely from private charity and the people behind know rebuilding notre dame makes fine business sense even if you have no sympathy for the church.