Expansion of Islamic Mosque divides the Mooresville Community

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – The Islamic Center of Lake Norman is expanding in Mooresville. Crowds of people packed into the Mooresville Town Hall meeting to comment on the new facility under construction off Brawley School Road.

“A house of worship should face the same standards, whatever faith is practiced there,” Al Reider, Community Engagement Manager for Council on American Islamic Relations said.

Reider was joined by interfaith leaders who reaffirmed their support for the mosque in a press conference before the meeting.

“Our friends across this town of Mooresville from many faiths and backgrounds, thank you for standing with this congregation,” Reider said. “You’ve shown what care and being neighbors looks like, to those who oppose us, our door remains open.”

The area on Brawley School Road is already zoned for religious use. The town has no authority to revoke the construction permits without cause. However some residents have been speaking out against it for months.

“By allowing the mosque to be built on American Christian land is unconstitutional,” Isaiah LaPhon, a Mooresville resident who claims to be a direct descendant of Alexander Hamilton said. “In doing so you defy the will of the founding fathers and you defy the will of this great American people.”

Some residents have expressed concerns about traffic. The Islamic Center of Lake Norman is the only mosque within a 30 mile radius that offers daily prayer and Sunday school for children.

“What they’re building is modest-a prayer hall that’s smaller than any than the fellowship halls of many churches in this town,” Jane from Indivisible Lake Norman said. “Our kids are watching how this town treats people who pray differently, whatever we decide, we’re telling them what kind of place this is.”

Local Islamic Leaders say they need a bigger mosque to accommodate growth. They also argue it’s within their constitution rights to build a church.

“Traffic concerns deserve careful review and factual answers,” Reider said. “Objections to someone’s faith, however, are a different matter entirely.”

Since the area is already zoned for religious use, construction on the facility will continue.