Muslim group asks for exemption
Originally published October 11, 2007 By <http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/customer_service/email_reporter.h tm?writer=Gina%20Gallucci> Gina <http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/customer_service/email_reporter.h tm?writer=Gina%20Gallucci> <http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/customer_service/email_reporter.h tm?writer=Gina%20Gallucci> Gallucci <http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/customer_service/email_reporter.h tm?writer=Gina%20Gallucci> News-Post Staff Photo by Sam Yu Walkersville resident Ed Marino talks about the proposed Muslim worship center in Walkersville, as an attorney, right foreground, for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community listens during a meeting of the Walkersville Town Council on Wednesday night. Marino said plans have always been foggy and that the plan is to have Walkersville become "the Mecca of America." WALKERSVILLE -- The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community will have to wait at least several weeks before finding out if it can go through with plans for a recreational center. At a meeting Wednesday, the town commissioners discussed the community's request to be exempt from a proposed ordinance that does not allow places of worship to be built on agricultural land. Ahmadiyya's leaders believe the plans for the recreational center on 224 acres at 8939 Woodsboro Pike should be exempt because the ordinance was proposed after the plans were submitted. In August, Town Commissioner Chad Weddle introduced a zoning ordinance that would prevent places of worship, along with public and private schools, antique shops and private clubs, from being built on agricultural land. Weddle has said his proposal was not aimed at Ahmadiyya and is not discriminatory. The concept of institutional zoning, for structures such as schools and churches, was first brought before the town commissioners in January, months before they had heard of the land sale. The town commissioners could vote on Weddle's proposal at their Oct. 24 meeting. They'll take into account a recommendation from the town planning commission, scheduled to vote on the ordinance Oct. 23. On that day, the planning commission is also scheduled to discuss the exemption request. If Weddle's proposal is approved and Ahmadiyya doesn't get the exemption, the community would have to ask for the land to be rezoned for the center to be built. About 10 residents spoke Wednesday, all against Ahmadiyya moving to the town. Ed Marino believes the community has supplied the town with fuzzy details about its plans. The plans have changed and grown over the course of several months, he said. He estimated the community would spend about $7 million to buy the land and construct the center, so he questioned why its leaders say the center will only be used on weekends and for a once-a-year event. "That doesn't sound like a good business plan," he said. Robert Taylor said he loves living in Walkersville but is not happy about the land sale because his house is near the property. "If that thing gets built, I'm going to have to look at it every day," Taylor said. "That's not going to sit well with me ... if it gets built, I am going to have to move somewhere else." A couple of residents told the standing-room only crowd it bothers them that some see the opposition as a sign of hatred toward the Muslim faith. It has nothing to do with religion -- it's quality of life issues that concern them most. After an audience member asked several questions about the procedure to approve ordinances, Town Burgess Ralph Whitmore assured the crowd the town was doing everything by the book so it doesn't get hauled into court later. Town Commissioner Jim Reid also addressed the crowd, saying this is one of the largest he's seen at a town meeting. This meant, he said, that people are upset. "People like the familiar, the way things are," he said. "But we have to do things by the book." <http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/news/display.htm?storyID=66219 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. 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