Opponents of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro’s planned mosque on Veals Road won’t monopolize public comments at Thursday’s Rutherford County Commission meeting.
September 15, 2010
By Scott Broden
“This time a majority of speakers are going to be in support of our First Amendment
rights,” said Thomas Moss, a Murfreesboro resident who is one of 16 speakers scheduled to address the commission and is one of the members of the grass-roots group Middle Tennesseans for Religious Freedom.
His group will stage a rally at 5 p.m. Thursday at the County Courthouse before the County Commission meets there at 6 p.m.
“The commission is my audience for the night to let them know where we stand on the issue of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro,” said Moss, an MTSU political science student who ran unsuccessfully for Murfreesboro City Council in April.
“Contrary to recent discussion, I’d like to inform people that the county commissioners have broken no laws in regard to the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro.”
Opponent mum on plan
Commissioners at three earlier meetings heard speeches from those against the Islamic Center. Opponents packed all three floors of the historic building June 17 when local resident Kevin Fisher and nearly 20 others criticized the county Regional Planning Commission’s approval of the mosque site plan.
Fisher is listed as the first speaker to sign up to address the commission at Thursday’s meeting.
“We actually have something planned,” Fisher said during a Tuesday phone interview. “I can’t say specifically what’s going to take place. You’ll have to have your camera ready.”
Fisher has complained that the county did not provide enough notice about the proposed Islamic Center. He’s also questioned if the development will cause traffic problems or if the congregation’s plans for a cemetery on site could contribute to water and soil contamination.
The new center is supposed to start off with about 10,000 square feet for a mosque for worship and a reception area. It could ultimately encompass more than 52,000 square feet.
The congregation plans to later add classrooms for religious study, administrative offices, a gym and an indoor pool. The 15-acre site also calls for development of a playground, pavilion, sports field and basketball/tennis court.
Copyright 2010 The Tennessean