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Edwardsville Intelligencer - June 27, 2005
Plans for mosque placed on hold
By Krista Wilkinson
A group that was seeking to open a mosque in a residential property in Edwardsville has withdrawn its application for that location, according to Edwardsville (Illinois) Director of Planning and Zoning Ray Lai.
The Islamic Center of Edwardsville-Masjid Al-Ghuraba had previously submitted an application to the city for a special use permit to utilize a house at 1527 Lewis Road as a place of worship. According to city zoning codes, residential properties may be used as places of worship as long as a special use requirements such as adequate parking are met.
"They so feel that that was a good project for that area, but the city didn't point out site problems with that property," said Jack Humes, attorney for the Islamic Center of Edwardsville.
Humes said that problems such as lot size and parking requirements were encountered with this particular property. Because of this, Humes said that the group decided to withdraw its request for a special use permit for the Lewis Road location and look elsewhere instead.
"They will be seeking out another property that will be more suitable," Humes said.
According to Lai, the issue of converting a property zoned residential into a place of worship was a cause of concern for many residents in the area. He said that it was an odd location for a place of worship because the property was in the middle of a residential block….
http://www.goedwardsville.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=14763538&BRD=2291&PAG=461&dept_id=473648&rfi=6
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