by L.H. Tiffany Hsieh | YorkRegion.com | October 22, 2011
The Islamic Society of Markham (Pictured) will lower the minaret and take out two domes on the new mosque as a gesture of goodwill.
The move has garnered some positive reviews, even though issues such as traffic and total capacity of the 28,000-sq. ft. place of worship on 16th Avenue remain unanswered for residents and some councillors.
“The changes are positive steps, but that’s still too high. The minaret has no real function,” said Ward 3 Councillor Don Hamilton.
The mosque’s board of directors took out a half-page ad in Thursday’s Economist & Sun, announcing its decision to reduce the minaret to 100 feet from 135 feet and eliminate two side domes to “minimize the visual impact to adjacent neighbours”.
The ad states the mosque is comparable in size to other places of worship recently built in Markham, has worked co-operatively with the town to accommodate requests that go beyond typical requirements for a place of worship and met the town’s parking requirements.
The mosque said they have willingly made changes in the spirit of being a good neighbour even though they have the right to proceed and build the current design.
Mr. Hamilton said he hopes the mosque will continue to work with the town and the community to make its site plan more acceptable.
“It has to be downplayed in terms of scale and size,” Mr. Hamilton said.
The Unionville councillor said he voted to approve the mosque’s site plan application last month because he had consulted with Ward 5 Councillor Colin Campbell and asked him whether or not his residents were all on side with the project.
“He said ‘yes’,” Mr. Hamilton said. “He said they had a community meeting and that there were some questions in the beginning but people were all on side at the end.”
Mr. Hamilton said he wasn’t made aware that only “a selective few” residents were invited to the meeting.
“I still support a religious building and a mosque being there, but the community has reacted negatively,” Mr. Hamilton said. He said the question about the mosque’s total capacity from residents is a fair one.
Despite repeated requests for an answer, Mayor Frank Scarpitti’s office did not respond.
In the eyes of Regional Councillor Joe Li, “That’s up to the mosque to tell people”.
Mr. Li said the changes the mosque is making are a good start, but added the process and traffic are more important issues. He said his Taj Mahal reference was a compliment to the mosque’s architectural design and that at the time of voting, he didn’t know about the planned 160 townhouse units adjacent to the site. The townhouse application has been deferred.
Mr. Li said he went to the town’s planning department on behalf of the residents who contacted him about the mosque to inquire what could be done. “They said, ‘Nothing’,” Mr. Li said. That being said, Mr. Li said he hopes the mosque will become an example of how different cultures in Markham can live side by side.
“I think education is important,” he said. “Everyone has the right to complain, but at the end of the day, we as council have rules to follow.”
Ward 2 Councillor Howard Shore believes the mosque is no different than a condo development that may or may not stir up a variety of questions in the community. However, “There’s a level of prejudice in the community”, Mr. Shore said. “Some people have a certain prejudice against the Muslim community and that’s terrible.”
Mr. Shore said he has received “scores of e-mails” about the mosque and that some misinformation has driven unfounded fear in the community. He said the misinformation included the actual square footage of the mosque and the 1,600 worshippers “typo”.
Asked if he knew the total capacity of the mosque, Mr. Shore said he couldn’t comment “because I don’t know”. But he said that’s a fair question to ask, just as are traffic, parking and compatibility of the design questions. However he said the ad shows the mosque’s leadership wants to work with the community.
Source: http://www.yorkregion.com/news/article/1230357--councillors-react-to-mosque-move-to-lower-minaret
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