Monticello, NY – Members of a four-year-old mosque are suing the Village of Monticello, claiming officials have continuously thrown up red tape and purposely harassed them.
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According to papers filed in state Supreme Court this week, a group called the Islamic Culture Center of Monticello Inc. claims it has spent nearly $1 million converting an old house on Cottage Street into a mosque and cultural center in an otherwise blighted neighborhood.
Judge Frank LaBuda granted a temporary restraining order against the village this week and will hear the case on June 14. The group, mostly Yugoslavian immigrants, is asking the judge to issue a permanent certificate of occupancy and restrain the village from interfering with the use of the mosque. It’s also asking $25,000 in damages and legal fees.
The lawsuit claims that village officials have extracted more than $10,000 in fees and recently demanded another $1,000 for further inspections, adding new conditions and quibbling over minor details, like whether they should be allowed to paint lines for the crosswalk to a future parking lot. They’ve held service at the mosque on Fridays for four years with a conditional certificate of occupancy.
The group’s attorney, Gerald Orseck, says the village is breaking federal law by piling on conditions and delaying approval.
Ibrahim Makovic, the named plaintiff, is a well-known builder.
“I’m just trying to get the CO,” he said on Friday.
I hope we show the same concern for these muslims as we show for yiddeshe mosdos that routinely have problems getting zoning approvals and building permits. All religious groups are entitled to respect and must be treated equally. Assuming they have satisfied the law, they should get their final approvals with no further delays. This situation is almost as bad as those 9/11 family zealots who oppose the new mosque that is to going to be built several blocks from ground zero.
now they know how jewish people feel when they try building in that neighborhood.
Actually, many people on this blog show very little concern when Jews are trying to build a synagogue etc. and the town/people put up stumbling blocks. They say “let them follow the law, blah blah blah.”
Difference is then the Record or some other paper usually has a negative article –unlike this one– to instigate them & make them feel righteous about their hate towards their fellow Jews.
FYI, the mosque has thumbed their nose at the Bldg Dept AND the local zoning laws. Now that the powers that be don’t do as they want, they go legal?? NO WAY!!
For those of you thinking that ‘inzere’ do exactly the same; be advised that there is a HUGE difference.
By us it would be in a wholly owned property not on Cottage Street, which is in the middle of a totally residential block. They built a high wall around the property and surrounding depressed property values have fallen even further.
I don’t blame the locals for giving them a hard time.
fyi the Muslims from Yugoslavian are much different than the Arab Muslims. when is the last time you heard of a terrorist from that country?