U.S. News - tennesse

Aug

2012

8:01pm, EDT

Hotly contested mosque to open Friday in Tennessee

Erik Schelzig / AP file

A worker walks out of the construction site of a mosque being built in Murfreesboro, Tenn., June 21, 2012.

By NBC News staff and The Associated Press

A new mosque outside of Nashville, Tenn. that has been hotly contested for two years – and subjected to a lawsuit, arson and a bomb threat – is scheduled to open for prayers on Friday, The Associated Press reported.

Islamic Center of Murfreesboro board member Saleh Sbenaty told the AP Tuesday that Rutherford County officials issued a 30-day occupancy permit that will allow use of the building while the final permit is pending.

"We're thrilled," Sbenaty said. "We hope everybody will be as happy and thrilled as we are."

The congregation hopes to hold prayer this week, as part of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which includes fasting during the day, The Tennessean reported. Ramadan ends Aug. 18.

Construction was nearly shut down after a Rutherford County judge ruled in May that the meeting where mosque construction was approved was not sufficiently advertised to the public.

Tennessee Muslims feel blessed this Ramadan

Last month, federal prosecutors stepped in to protect the religious liberty of mosque members. U.S. Attorney Jerry Martin argued the county judge had illegally created a separate "mosque standard" for public notice that only applied to the Islamic center.

A federal judge ruled in favor of the mosque, allowing construction and permitting to move ahead. The temporary permit is good until mid-October and will allow contractors time to complete the landscaping and some other last details.

The new 12,000-square-foot mosque replaces an existing 2,100-square-foot building that serves about 250 local families and many Muslim students attending Middle Tennessee State University. Worshippers regularly have to stand in the parking lot during prayers because the current space is too small.

Although Muslims have worshipped at the existing mosque for 30 years, protests erupted shortly after plans for the new mosque were approved in May 2010.

Opponents spent two years in court trying to force the county to halt construction. Attorneys for the opposition claimed that Islam is not a valid religion and that mosque members were part of a plot to overthrow the U.S. Constitution and replace it with Islamic law. Those claims were thrown out by the local judge.

In an email on Tuesday, lead plaintiff Kevin Fisher wrote, "History will one day judge whether we were wrong about this mosque, or whether we were right all along."

Sbenaty said mosque leaders have met with some of their opponents over the past two years.

"We tried to calm their fears, but they believe at heart that we are here to do evil things," he said. "We're hoping this will go down with time, but it's going to take a while."

Controversy about the mosque played a role in state elections, as well. Lou Ann Zelenik, Republican candidate for Congress based her campaign on her opposition to Islam and, more specifically, the mosque, even though it was outside her congressional district, Reuters reported.

Tennessee candidates engage in anti-Islam contest

Ultimately, Zelenik lost to U.S. Representative Diane Black in the primary vote last week. Black also opposed the mosque but said she would respect the First Amendment – freedom of religion.

Currently, the only protest is a row of white crosses lining the front lawn of a Baptist church next door, according to wpln.org, Nashville Public Radio.

Tennessee mosque work continues after judge voids building permit

Mark Humphrey / AP

The Islamic Center of Murfreesboro is under construction in Murfreesboro, Tenn.

By WSMV's Larry Flowers and msnbc.com's Jim Gold

Updated at 7:30 p.m. ET: Construction work continued on a Murfreesboro, Tenn., mosque Wednesday despite a judge’s ruling a day earlier voiding building permits for the controversial project.

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Chancellor Robert Corlew III of the 16^th District Chancery Court ruled that construction must cease because not enough notice was given about a May 24, 2010, public meeting in which Rutherford County planning commissioners approved the site plan for the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro.

"This is Sharia law," Joe Brandon, plaintiffs’ attorney, said of construction continuing without a valid permit. "They’re thumbing their nose at the state of Tennessee."

Brandon lodged an order Wednesday at the Chancery Court asking that construction at the mosque be stopped completely.

The county had not issued a stop work order by the end of Wednesday, Brandon said.

"If it were you or I, they'd be out there and stop us," Brandon charged. "The county attorney needs to man up and tell them to stop."

Corlew ruled in favor of Kevin Fisher and other Rutherford County residents who sued the Planning Commission. The mosque is free to reapply for permits, he said.

"It's a good day for the plaintiffs; I'm very pleased with the outcome," plaintiff Henry Golcyznky said, adding he was somewhat surprised Corlew ruled in the plaintiffs' favor.

See the original story on NBC Station WSMV of Nashville, Tenn.

"There should have been public notice. People should have been allowed to come in and express or at least understand what was going on," Golcyznky said.

A public notice about the 2010 Planning Commission meeting, in which no public hearing was required over the mosque’s site plan, was published in the twice-weekly Murfreesboro Post, which has a contract to handle Rutherford County’s legal advertising.

Islamic Center members said they hoped to complete the first phase of the mosque by Ramadan, a month-long Muslim holiday beginning this year on July 20, based on the Islamic lunar calendar.

"This decision comes at a crucial time, because we were at a point about to celebrate the opening of our center. which we were hoping to happen, probably within two to three months. It's a sad day in our community," said mosque member Saleh Sbenaty.

Construction of the $2 million, 52,000-square-foot mosque is well under way, with the first phase, a 12,000-square-foot building, nearly complete.

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The mosque was not a party in the lawsuit.

"We really don't know the implications of the ruling that the judge came with. We're still in contact with our legal counsel. ... We're going to see what the next step is going to be," Sbenaty said

If the mosque officials must reapply for permits, then they will, he said.

A construction crew was at the mosque site Wednesday.

"The decision of the court will not be final at the earliest until 30 days after a court order is filed, county attorney Jim Cope said. "Therefore, things will remain in a fluid state during the next several weeks until the parties, ICM, and the court address all the legal issues that remain pending and unresolved."

The judge's ruling drew nationwide attention.

Council on American-Islamic Relations called for the Department of Justice to intervene in the case if the county doesn't issue new building permits to "protect the religious rights of Tennessee Muslims."

CAIR said the judge’s ruling “used phrases and reasoning which could be viewed as indicating that a higher degree of public notice is required for issues related to Tennessee Muslims.”

Earlier story at NBC station WSMV of Nashville, Tenn.

"American Muslim constitutional rights should not be diminished merely because anti-Muslim bigots are able to manufacture a controversy about what would otherwise be normal religious activities," said CAIR attorney Gadeir Abbas.

"If the Rutherford County Planning Commission does not immediately issue new permits for the mosque, we urge the Department of Justice to intervene in this case to support the religious rights of Tennessee Muslims."

Mosque opponents have fought construction for two years, arguing that Islam is not a real religion deserving of First Amendment protections and that the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro has terrorist ties.

The judge dismissed those allegations but held the trial on the narrower claim that the public meeting law was violated.

Larry Flowers is a reporter at NBC station WSMV of Nashville, Tenn.

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