Huge Mosque Build Given Go-Ahead
Construction News (London), July 24, 2009
Plans for the construction of a five-storey building which will be one of London’s biggest mosques have been given the go-ahead.
Harrow Central Mosque will serve Muslim worshippers from across north London when it is built on Station Road. The designs include a 40m-high minaret, a gym, a crèche [day-care center] and a café within the 5,745 square metre development.
It is expected to open next year after Harrow Council approved changes to the original plans, which were passed in June 2000.
The planning committee has imposed conditions on the build, which include that a house on Station Road currently being used as the mosque is turned into affordable housing. The Mosque builders will also pay £15,000 towards controlled parking measures in Rosslyn Crescent.
Councillor Marilyn Ashton, cabinet member for planning, development and enterprise, said: “This is a very significant building on Harrow’s skyline and while permission was given some while ago, it was important we regularised changes that had been made. I’m pleased that we have been able to give formal permission while at the same time balancing that with the views of local residents.”
IslamicFinder.org
The mosque in its current form is located adjacent to the new building. At present it is far too small to service the whole of the Muslim community presently residing in Harrow. The new mosque project therefore aims to provide a purpose-built mosque which will become a cultural centre for Muslims residing in Harrow and further a field.
Following the completion of the external work on the building, it is plain to see that the new mosque is something special. The building is not only aesthetically pleasing up close, but is also a landmark that can be seen from miles away.
The new mosque is not only a place of prayer. The intention is that it will become an educational resource centre as well as a place of interest for Muslims and non-Muslims alike.
[Editor’s Note: More information is available about this “aesthetically pleasing landmark that can be seen from miles away” here.]
