Community divided over proposed mosque and Islamic Centre on Brampton-Vaughan border

Bramptonguardian.com
Jan. 3, 2023

A proposed mosque and Islamic Centre in Brampton’s east end is causing quite a stir in the community.

Hundreds of residents packed council chambers and the atrium at city hall for a Dec. 12 planning and development meeting, with over 200 people registering as delegates during the nine-hour committee session that lasted until after 4 a.m. Support for -- and opposition to -- the centre split roughly down the middle.

The proposed Brampton and Regional Islamic Centre (BARIC), which operates as a non-profit and charitable organization, would be located at 9445 Clarkway Dr. The site is adjacent to Highway 50 on the border between Brampton and the City of Vaughan.

BARIC representatives told planning committee members the centre has outgrown its current location at a plaza on Ebenezer Road. The proposed new 3,116 square-metre (33,540 square feet) facility would feature a mosque, Islamic Centre, gymnasium, evening school for religious teachings, fitness centre, library and community activity centre.

Most of those in opposition to BARIC’s request to council to rezone the site were area residents living in one of the nearby subdivision neighbourhoods. The proposed site is mostly a wooded area zoned for agricultural use currently. BARIC said it plans to maintain 60 per cent of the woodland.

Residents were mostly concerned about increased activity, traffic and noise in the area. Many delegates worried the 94 parking spaces proposed for the centre were insufficient and will lead to overflow parking on area streets already short on spaces for residents.

“Where a new facility generates an increased population, it must be able to accommodate this increase. At this point, it’s unclear whether the subject site can accommodate the amount of people and cars that it proposes to hold,” Grace O’Brien, an attorney representing at least three nearby landowners, told committee.

“Traffic is up, accidents are up, crime is up, parking on our streets is already getting scarce. Privacy has been reduced and noise pollution is up. Putting this proposal forward will only worsen things,” said area resident Krutiben Patel. “I don’t necessarily oppose the construction of this facility, but I oppose the location.”

Other concerns voiced by residents included public safety and environmental concerns, primarily referring to the loss of green space through deforestation as part of a large part of the site.

Many supporters of BARIC’s proposed new facility and place of worship pointed to a lack of mosques in the city’s east end, as well as listing benefits of another community centre in the area, especially for the city’s Muslim youth.

“(BARIC) provides religious and community services for a large population living in East Brampton and surrounding areas,” said Barrick representative Rahmatullah Habib.

“(It) plays an important role by providing humanitarian aids to various charities and relief organizations, hospitals, foundations and others. This year it helped (Hurricane) Fiona victims in Canada and flood victims in Pakistan,” he said, adding BARIC is quickly outgrowing its current space.

The meeting became heated at times with some blaming opposition to the centre on Islamophobia. However, for the most part, it was a mostly orderly affair.

“I’m glad we had such great participation. As much as the fact that some of the comments online were more nasty,” Mayor Patrick Brown said in an interview.

“It was neighbours there with neighbours. And although they might have been petitioning for different results, in person they were very respectful. That wasn’t what I saw online. It’s nice being able to get people out to a public meeting in person, (which) we weren’t able to do during COVID, because I think being there in person breaks down some of the barriers,” he added.

With the statutory public meeting now complete, planning staff will consider all public input provided at the meeting and conduct further studies of the proposal and its potential impacts and benefits.