Approval of mosque three years after opening 'Council embarrassment'

Plans for the mosque in Beacon Road, Wibsey, went before Councillors yesterday, three years after Bradford Council wrongly told the mosque owners they didn’t need planning permission to open the place of worship.

The operation of the mosque has caused deep concern for many local residents, particularly with parking, irregular opening houses and noise with dozens of complaints submitted.

Some Councillors said the decision was a “no win situation for us”, while one said the Council was “being embarrassed into making a decision” and years of complaints had been ignored.

The Council’s Regulatory and Appeals Committee heard the item for retrospective permission for the conversion of a GP practice into a mosque.

It was told it began operating as a mosque around three years ago after initially being told planning permission was not needed, as places of worship and doctors surgery are classified as the same class of usage, however this decision was challenged and after Government Ombudsman intervention the decision had to be reviewed.

Planning officer Ross Hallam told the committee the mosque is “not a big facility” with a usual congregation of about 20 people.

He said on concerns of noise and parking, internal sound insulation can be installed, and during busy periods such as Friday prayers parking wardens are in place.

Highways officer John Rowley added that the mosque has not led to any accidents on the roads around the site, and he “would have expected any major problems caused by the mosque to show itself by now”.

On parking issues, he said public highways are “a first come, first served basis” and the amount of street parking available is “satisfactory”, but enforcement will be used if people are parking illegally.

Speaking on behalf of objectors, local resident Peter Rhodes said he has been “complaining for four years about the detrimental effect of the mosque”.

He highlighted irregular opening hours and noise from cars as a major problem.

“It is usually open well after 10pm and opens at 5am, and it’s not uncommon for cars to be coming and going at all hours of the night.

“A 92-year-old woman had to move bedrooms due to the noise, and it affects schoolchildren who are trying to sleep.”

He also said cars are regularly parked on double yellow lines and pavements by worshippers, adding: “The Council is only supporting this because it would be embarrassing for them when they told the mosque before they didn’t need permission; it’s about saving face.

“The impact on residents has been horrendous.”

Michael Ainsworth, agent for the mosque, said traffic to the mosque is “not dissimilar” to the surgery it was before and is a modest building with a maximum capacity of 40.

He said late night usage was “simply not true” and apart from on Fridays the mosque is only used by a handful of people.

Wibsey Councillor Sabiya Khan supported the plans, saying the mosque had become a “valuable part of the community”, but colleague Cllr David Green raised concerns both sides of the argument had been “poorly treated by the Council”.

Committee member Cllr John Pennington added his concerns, saying the Council had been “embarrassed into making a decision”, and added: “The mosque has made no effort in the past four years to be a good neighbour.

“There has been a four year tidal wave of objections and complaints that have just been ignored.”

Fellow member Cllr Geoff Reid said: “We are in quite a difficult position; I’ve never been on a committee with such conflicting versions of events within minutes of each other.”

“I suspect officers have done this by the book, but the local Cllr has raised some serious issues from residents.”

Cllr Alan Wainwright added that the case was a “no win situation for the Council”.

The plans were approved by three votes to one, with Cllrs Kamran Hussain, Mohammed Amran and Zafar Ali in favour, Cllr John Pennington against, and Cllrs Alan Wainwright and Geoff Reid abstaining.