Concord mosque proposal moves ahead

Sometimes new growth requires the destruction of old growth.

And for the Islamic Society of Greater Concord to build the city’s first mosque, that means the double-ended brick building at 9 Pearl St. – uninhabited for the last five years and structurally unstable, according to its owner – has to go.

The Concord planning board recognized this during its regular meeting Wednesday night when they granted the mosque a conditional use permit to allow places of religious worship in an Urban Commercial district and minor site plan approval for the mosque’s proposed 3,300-square foot parking lot.

The Islamic Society’s drive for the city’s first permanent mosque cleared its first hurdle in August when the city’s zoning board approved the plans and granted six variances, including one that would let the society have less parking than the city technically requires.

The approval was conditional upon the society purchasing the Pearl Street building, which will be knocked down to create a 16-space parking area, and merging that lot with its proposed 181 N. Main St. location. The Society also has a written agreement with the First Congregational Church next door to share its 36-space lot during the mosque’s busiest hours.

Read more: http://www.concordmonitor.com/First-Concord-mosque-takes-another-step-forward-13221571