Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Somalis want building for mosque in Northampton

Members of Northampton's Somali community have called for council officials to help them find a new community building as they fear their current base could face closure.
Tomorrow, members of Northampton Borough Council's planning committee will decide whether a former shop in Barrack Road, which the authority claims has been converted into a mosque without planning permission, should be shut down.

Council officials have said they received complaints about the building after more than 100 worshippers attended the site, causing problems with both parking and noise.

But the centre's organisers, Ibrahim Hassan and Abdiweli Mahmood, have denied the venue attracts such large crowds and argued it is a community centre, not a mosque.

In a joint statement, they said: "This could have been a focal point to a community that is broken down from a nation that has been devastated by ethnic war for the last two decades.

"But since we are foreseeing the closure of this site, it seems we are not getting any support from the council.

"As a community there is a need for a centre like this, we therefore urge the council to provide us an alternative site."

If councillors agree the Barrack Road centre should close, it would have to close within two months.

The borough council's faith champion, Councillor Scott Collins (Lib Dem, Eastfield) said that while the authority would probably not be able to provide a new building for the Somali community, it would try to help them in any other way possible.

He said: "There are many religious groups that have moved into Northampton that are simply lacking space for prayer.

"I think we take it for granted there are lots of churches around, but different faiths need different types of buildings.

"So we'll certainly support what they want to do and be with them every step of the way, because we're very aware of the challenges they face."

The council's planning committee will make a decision on the future of the Barrack Road building tomorrow.

Source: Northampton Chron & Echo

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