Lilburn mosque proposal denied, will be settled in court

By Patrick Fox

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Lilburn City Council on Monday night denied a rezoning request that would have allowed the construction of a larger neighborhood mosque and ended a year-long dispute between the city and a local Muslim congregation.

The council deadlocked 2-2 on the rezoning application, which is far from settled.

"You understand this is not the final say?" Councilman Eddie Price asked before voting to deny the rezoning. "This will go to court and a judge will have the final say, and we will have almost no input on this. Do you understand that? Are you willing to take that risk?"

The decision came at the Gwinnett County courthouse in Lawrenceville in response to Dar-E-Abbas' application for a 20,000-square-foot mosque to be built on four acres at U.S. 29 and Hood Road.

Doug Dillard, an attorney representing the congregation, called the denial "absolutely ridiculous" and said the case would continue in court.

"We did everything we could to compromise," he said.

Rezoning opponents said the mosque faction was trying to turn a zoning issue into a First Amendment issue. They also said the site plan was flawed.

The denial, however, was another step in patching strained relations between city leaders and Hood Road residents. Homeowners have argued the bigger mosque would create noise, storm water and parking problems, and ran counter to the city's land-use plan.

"They need to leave all this religious stuff out of it," resident Angel Alonso said. "None of the zoning criteria were met. Give us a real plan."

For the past 12 years, the congregation has held worship services in two 2,000-square foot buildings on 1.4 acres of land on Hood Road. Congregation leaders wanted to buy an additional 6.5 acres and build a 20,000-square-foot mosque, cemetery and gymnasium to accommodate the city's growing Muslim community. The Muslim population in metro Atlanta is estimated at 80,000.

In November, the the city council rejected the proposal. That triggered a religious discrimination lawsuit against the city in federal court. Discussion between the city and congregation led to a rezoning plan scaled back to four acres,excluding the cemetery and gymnasium.

The cemetery issue was settled in September when the city amended its zoning laws on cemeteries in certain residential areas. That made it possible for Dar-E-Abbas to build a cemetery less than a half-mile away on Harbins Road.

Last week, the Lilburn planning commission recommended that the revised rezoning request be denied. Commissioners cited faulty site plans, taking issue with buffers and parking to the potential for noise and water runoff.

Dillard, in his presentation to the council Monday night, said the congregation stood committed to meet all the conditions raised by planners.