Bridgewater mosque will be built, as township settles suit for $7.75 million
on December 02, 2014 at 4:27 PM
A man prays during noon-time prayers at the Islamic Cultural Center in Newark. The township's insurance carrier will also pay the center $5 million for alleged damages, costs and attorney fees to end the years-long lawsuit, according to the report. The township will be given the Mountaintop Road property in exchange for the 15-acre site between Routes 202-206 and Route 287 it will purchase for the mosque.
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People for the American Way has an info-graphic that
gives a visual representation of attacks on mosques in the USA,
highlighting that the phenomenon of hate attacks is spread across the
country.
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Bridgewater to review plans for mosque on Route 202-206
BRIDGEWATER – The Al Falah Center, whose proposal to convert the former Redwood Inn into a mosque sparked a lengthy legal fight that eventually ended in a land swap with the Bridgewater, will go to the township planning board later this month with plans to build a mosque and school on Route 202-206.
The mosque will be built on a wooded 15-acre tract on the west side of the highway between the Green Knoll Center and the Woodmont Apartments.
The Al Falah Center’s plans call for two buildings — a 16,520-square-foot house of worship and a 16,000-square-foot school.
The planning board hearing is scheduled for 7 p.m. Aug. 24 at the municipal complex on Commons Way. No use variance is needed because houses of worship and schools are conditionally permitted uses in the zone and no other variances are part of the application.
The mosque will have three 78-foot minarets, and the dome over the main prayer area will be 48 feet.
The mosque will also have 10 education rooms, a kitchen, a library and a community room, according to plans. The two-story, 60-by-150-foot school behind the mosque will have 24 classrooms and a gymnasium.
Because of site constraints, no school was proposed for the Mountaintop Road site, though classrooms for religions education were included in the mosque. At the rear of the school will be volleyball, tennis and basketball courts, plus a soccer field.
Township ordinance requires 225 parking spaces; the plans call for 291 spaces. The entrance to the site will be toward the north side of the property.
In a settlement approved in December, the township agreed to buy the 15-acre lot and exchange it for the former Redwood Inn property on Mountaintop Road where the mosque originally was proposed. The township will use $815,000 from its open-space trust fund and a $1.935 million bond ordinance to buy the property.
In addition, the township’s insurance carrier will pay the Al Falah Center $5 million for alleged damages, costs and attorney fees in exchange for dropping its lawsuit against the township.
The settlement ended a bitter three-year dispute that landed in federal court and cost the township hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees.
The settlement also ended the protracted planning board hearings that started in January 2014 on Al Falah’s proposal to build the mosque on the former Redwood Inn property.
The hearings often featured contentious exchanges between neighbors and witnesses testifying for the Al Falah Center on issues such as the size of prayer mats used to determine the number of worshipers the proposed mosque could accommodate, a number that would determine the required number of parking spaces.
Neighbors to the proposed mosque on Mountaintop Road hired lawyers to represent them before the board.
The legal battle between the township and the Al Falah Center began after the congregation applied in January 2011 to construct the mosque on the site of the former catering hall.
Two months later, the council adopted an ordinance that limited sites for a house of worship to certain roads because of traffic-volume concerns. That ordinance would have shifted the mosque proposal to the zoning board of adjustment, where requirements for granting a use variance are more stringent.
After the dismissal, the Al Falah Center filed suit in federal court, alleging that the township violated federal law by enacting a land-use ordinance that treats religious institutions on less than equal terms than nonreligious institutions. The accelerated passage of the ordinance was “strong circumstantial evidence” of the township’s intent to discriminate against the mosque, according to court papers.
In September 2013, federal Judge Michael Shipp sided with the Al Falah Center and ruled that the mosque application must be heard by the planning board without applying the standards in the ordinance.
http://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/local/somerset-county/2015/08/13/bridgewater-review-plans-mosque-route/31667433/
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Bridgewater Planning Board Approves Al Falah Mosque on Route 202/206
September 29, 2015
BRIDGEWATER, NJ - Despite concerns from residents about future planning and insufficient parking, the Bridgewater Township Planning Board unanimously approved an application Monday for an Al Falah Center mosque to be built on Route 202/206.
In December, the township approved a settlement with the Al Falah Center in regard to litigation concerning a proposed mosque on the former Redwood Inn site on Mountain Top Road.
The settlement agreement preserves the residential zoning on the Redwood Inn site, which was part of an ordinance approved in 2011 to remove houses of worship from sites in the township that do not front on a county, state or designated township road. In addition, the settlement settles all monetary claims related to the litigation.
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https://www.tapinto.net/towns/bridgewater-raritan/categories/news/articles
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http://www.alfalahcenter.org/
WELCOME TO ALFALAH CENTER
A 501(c)3 Organization - Tax Exempt EIN: 90-0639190
Alfalah Islamic Center in Somerset County provides various services such as five daily prayers, Jummah prayers, Islamic School on Saturdays and Sundays, Taraweeh prayers, community Iftars, Eid Prayers, and much more. The Islamic Center serves the residents of Bridgewater, Basking Ridge, Bedminster, Bernardsville, Warren, Watchung, New Providence, Berkley Heights, Chester, Summit, and surrounding areas.
Alfalah Islamic Sunday school provides comprehensive Islamic education to children between ages 5 to 18 years. The curriculum includes Qur’anic and Islamic Studies, Arabic language and youth discussions on relevant issues. Youth activities include field trips, community service projects, and leadership training.
AlFalah Center Eid Prayer:
Thursday September 24 th, 2015 - 9:00 amPlease join us for Eid ul-Adha prayers in a warm and welcoming environment!
Days Inn Conference Center
1260 Route 22 East, Bridgewater NJ 08807
Potluck Brunch
- Please bring your favorite breakfast foods, fresh fruits, and Eid delicacies to share and enjoy
- Stay and socialize with family and friends
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Final Hearing on Mosque in Bridgewater Tonight
Township to give Al Falah property on Route 202/206 as part of settlement
Bridgewater, NJ
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Property purchased! Alhamdolillah....
With the great mercy and blessings from Allah, and the absolutely tremendous generosity of our community and supporters, we have completed the purchase of the former Redwood Inn property - where God willing, we plan to build AlFalah Islamic Center. We are truly grateful to Allah, and to all of you who have gone above and beyond to help us reach this amazing milestone!
It brought tears to all our eyes to see the children who came to donate the dollar bills from their allowance, the teens who brought all the money they had saved from summer jobs, the many women who gave the jewelry off their hands - one grandmother who donated her own wedding band - and the many individuals and families who gave their all to this effort, in time, money, prayers, and energy.
The legal effort is currently underway to win back our right to build a house of worship like every other faith community here in Bridgewater. Many, many thanks to our devoted legal team who have been working tirelessly "pro bono" - at no charge - for our cause.
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