ACTION ALERT: Call DuPage County to Support Mosques Seeking Permits

ACTION: Call the DuPage County Board and show your support for: the Islamic Center of the Western Suburbs (ICSW), the Muslim Education and Cultural Center of America (MECCA), and the Irshad Learning Center (ILC).

Make your voice heard and make a difference!

Contact the following County Board Members and ask them to vote in favor of these Muslim community centers:

Rita Gonzalez : (630) 456-1792 - rita.gonzalez@dupageco.org Tony Michelassi: (630) 788-8338 - anthony.michelassi@dupageco.org Grant Eckhoff : (630) 510-0660 - geckhoff@dupageco.org Dirk Enger: (630) 588-0344 - dirk.enger@dupageco.org John Curran: (630) 541-7588 - john.curran@dupageco.org Paul Fichtner: (630) 251-7883 - PFichtner@dupageco.org James Healy: (630) 655-6000 - jhealy@dupageco.org Brian J. Krajewski: brian.krajewski@dupageco.org Robert L. Larsen: robert.larsen@dupageco.org JR McBride: (630) 790-1040 - jmcbride@dupageco.org Michael F. McMahon: (630) 261-9000 Debra Olson: (630) 221-9593 - dolson@dupageco.org Patrick J. O’Shea: (630) 620-8551 Donald Puchalski: (630) 543 -2320 - dpuchalski@dupageco.org Jeff Redick: (630) 607.9681) - jredick@dupageco.org Brien Sheahan: (630) 728-4641 - bsheahan@dupageco.org James F. Zay, Jr.: (630) 876-8601 - jzay@dupageco.org John Zediker: (630) 697-3062 - jzediker@dupagco.org

BACKGROUND:

Yesterday, the DuPage County Zoning Board of Appeals voted 5 to 2 to recommend the denial of a special-use permit for the Muslim Educational and Cultural Center of America (MECCA). A second recommendation will be made by the DuPage County Development Committee (CDC) on February 1, followed by a final decision by the DuPage County Board.

SEE: Chicago Tribune: DuPage zoning board rejects mosque request

"We are baffled by Thursday's recommendation," Ahmed Rehab, CAIR-Chicago Executive Director said. "MECCA has done a phenomenal job of meeting and exceeding all of the requirements of the zoning process."

Zoning board members who voted against the Mosque petition cited traffic and flooding issues and "a saturation of religious institutions."

“The plan submitted by the petitioner addresses the flooding concerns head-on,” Board member Michael Loftus who voted for the MECCA proposal told the Tribune.

Loftus said traffic from the mosque is not a concern because the county is already planning for increased traffic on 91st Street in the near future, the Tribune reports.

"There are a total of zero Sunni Mosques in the unincorporated DuPage county, the area for which this decision is being made. In what way does that constitute an over-saturation?" Rehab said.

"There is a large and growing number of Muslim families who live, work, and pay taxes in DuPage County yet are being denied the same right as their neighbors to establish institutions to accommodate their religious and community needs."

This is the third Muslim community center to petition for a special-use permit over the last couple of years. This same DuPage County Zoning Board of Appeals has recommended a denial all three times. This is a disconcerting track record.

A recommendation for denial for the Irshad Learning Center of Naperville was taken up by the final board vote despite a recommendation for approval by the CDC. CAIR-Chicago subsequently filed a lawsuit against DuPage county to address the religious rights violations of Irshad Learning Center.

The third denial was recommended against a Muslim community center, the Islamic Center of the West Suburbs (ICWS). ICWS is currently awaiting the recommendation of the CDC to be followed by the final board decision.

"In addition to the accommodation concerns, these centers would contribute immensely to the area's economic, cultural, and charitable development," added Rehab.

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