Nov. 14, 2018, a Special Permit Amendment hearing with the Board of Zoning Appeals for Fairfax County was held for McLean Islamic Center, more than a month after an Oct. 3 hearing was deferred.
The McLean Islamic Center is trying to modify its permit to remove restrictions which place burdens on daily services like fajr prayer.
Many of those that attended the most recent public hearing at the Fairfax Government Center Building came to show their solidarity with MIC and speak in support of MIC’s application to permit modifications of development conditions. It’s the first ever Islamic Center in Tysons Corner, but the current conditions make it difficult to operate as a place of worship.
Those that spoke in front of the BZA supporting MIC included MIC community and board members, interfaith community partners, neighbors of MIC, visitors to the center, and the youth. The speeches given were heartfelt and conveyed kind words and fond experiences at MIC. Many of the speeches touched on religious freedoms, some people even mentioning how they left their countries overseas to enjoy those freedoms here, while others mentioned how our religious history in America began with those escaping religious persecution in Europe.
The hearing was deferred to Nov. 14 so the Board of Zoning could have more time to review the large volume of public letters received. In addition, the BZA needed to complete its review of several key elements including the sound analysis and a traffic study submitted by MIC. This review has been completed.
The aim of the hearing was to get approval for modifications to the permit including extending the service times for holidays and special events. MIC currently has a closing time of 10:30 p.m., rendering it problematic to offer Taraweeh prayer in Ramadan or Isha prayer in the summer months when it starts later. MIC also wants an allowance so Fajr prayer can start as early as 4 a.m. and the removal of 10 person limit on attendees. MIC’s current permit only allows group worship from 4-7pm, and this prevents assembly for Asr and Maghrib prayers. Lastly, the Mclean Muslims are requesting an allowance for activities concluding by 11 pm so they can offer late night prayer and youth activities.
The traffic and noise generated by MIC’s members and visitors was brought up as a concern by Craig Blakeley, a lawyer representing the Carrington Community Association surrounding the masjid. The traffic study submitted to the BZA was conducted for the traffic on Jarrett Valley Drive, where the masjid is located, during the a.m. and p.m. hours. This was further reviewed by the Virginia Department of Transportation as well as the Fairfax County Department of Transportation. The study concluded that the impacts on the intersection with Route 7 and on Jarrett Valley Drive would be minimal. As a result, transportation officials had no objection to letting MIC operate during a.m. or p.m. hours and recommended approval of the application.
MIC also submitted a noise study which determined that the noise generated from the masjid in the a.m. and p.m. hours, such as cars turning on and off, locking up, and parking lot conversations, was not louder than the existing background noise from the adjacent Route 7/Dulles Toll Road and showed relatively little impact on noise. The noise study revealed that there is continuous background noise generated from the roadway that is far greater than the noise the masjid generates from cars and visitors.
Based on findings of the traffic and sound report, the County Staff recommended approval of all modifications to conditions. Although they agreed with the results of the study, however, they also acknowledged the close proximity of residents in the Carrington neighborhood and recommended that MIC have a volunteer parking lot monitor on site that can identify any noise issues and quickly remedy them.
Sultan Chaudhry, President of MIC, stood in front of the BZA and conveyed that everything should be looked at within context, including the traffic and noise concerns. “Since 2014,” he said, “the four tallest buildings in Tysons have been constructed, the Route 7 bridge had been expanded, lanes lengthened and a sound barrier erected.”
Those who attended the hearing learned about the significance of MIC to its community and interfaith partners. MIC, which was first established as a non-profit faith community in 2009, used to operate in the basement of an office in downtown Mclean. They moved to the current location on Jarrett Valley Drive in 2015, following approval of a special permit approved by the BZA. It was the first Islamic Center to open in Tysons Corner, marking a truly historic milestone for MIC.
Chaudhry referred to MIC as a “sanctuary and haven where people come to pray in times of happiness and seek refuge in times of sorrow.” Despite being limited in their functions because of permit restrictions, Chaudhry mentioned their numerous services and programs that cater to members of all ages and genders, including knitting circles, mentorship programs, boys and girls scouts, and gardening events.
Allison Carpenter, Secretary, Executive Board MIC, spoke to the BZA about first joining MIC in 2010, when it was in the basement of that office in downtown Mclean and how thrilled she was when they bought the land and moved to its current location. She has three kids who also enjoy going to MIC and claims that Muslims don’t feel safe in a lot of places right now. What people want, according to her, “is a place of solace-a place where they can feel reconnected and centered.” MIC is that place for her.
Numerous interfaith leaders from local synagogues and churches also spoke in support of MIC at the hearing, many who claimed to be proud longtime friends of MIC. Jeffrey Saxe, one of the rabbis at the Temple Rodef Shalom in Falls Church spoke about how they have worked with MIC previously to hold interfaith dialogues, feed the hungry, and help Syrian refugees, and his delight to have Chaudhry join them in lighting a candle at a recent ceremony honoring those killed in the synagogue in Pittsburg. Saxe, like many other religious leaders at the hearing, asked that the BZA simply treat MIC the same way they would any other place of worship.
Some neighbors from the Carrington community, residing in homes surrounding MIC also voiced their support at the hearing. Many claimed that they never had an issue with MIC, or heard any noise, disruption or complaints from their neighbors.
After sitting through approximately an hour and forty minutes of speeches and testimonies in support of MIC, some of the BZA members expressed their disappointment with attendees assuming that the BZA would not approve the amendment. John Ribble III, Chairman BZA, also made a point to clarify that the Carrington neighborhood and MIC came up with the current conditions, and the BZA approved the special permit in 2015. Members on the board also reassured attendees that they are not trying to restrict any religious activities and that three of the members on the board worked to approve Dar Al-Hijrah and were active in the ADAMS (All Dulles Area Muslim Society) approvals.
The BZA also questioned MIC about why they initially agreed to the 10 person limit condition for Fajr prayer, to which they responded that their community has grown since then and they have more people interested in attending Fajr prayer now. Chaudhry says that it was only after realizing that they could not comply with the condition that they made “the heartbreaking decision to suspend the Fajr prayer, choosing to appeal to the BZA.” To date, he says they have missed 261 Fajr prayers; an opportunity he says will never be given back to two community members who passed away in this time.
The opposition was given a chance to voice their opinions to the BZA following those who spoke in support of MIC. Blakely, the lawyer representing the Carrington Community Association, began his speech by stating that it wasn’t a matter of religious intolerance, as some might have suggested in their testimonies, but rather their opposition to the amendment is “to any commercial or other activity that is at the location and proposing to operate at 4 in the morning.” He also talked about traffic and noise concerns that the neighbors have expressed to him and informed the BZA that he would like to submit new videos for the record. The videos, according to Blakely, “show instances where MIC has not complied with the development conditions that were agreed to by MIC and the Carrington Community Association in 2015 and approved by the BZA.”
Following Blakely’s remarks, a few of the neighbors that Blakely is defending had an opportunity to speak. One spoke about her special needs son who is bothered by the noise from MIC and cannot sleep at night, adding unnecessary stress to their life. She also expressed not having privacy when sitting on her deck because the lights from the MIC parking lot shine on her property. Another neighbor complained that on Friday’s she witnesses people parking on her cul de sac and walking to the center, violating the MIC parking rules. These neighbors urged the BZA to deny MIC’s special permit amendment.
After the remarks from the opposition there was a short recess and then rebuttal from the MIC lawyer, Shane Murphy. Murphy revealed that MIC received many letters of support from neighbors in the Carrington community and displayed a visual presentation, which highlighted the location of those neighbors. He assured the BZA that the Carrington Community “was not speaking with one voice.”
Murphy also talked about all the precautionary measures that MIC has taken to prevent MIC members and visitors from disturbing the neighbors or parking in their neighborhood. Those measures include increasing their parking lot from a 54 space lot to a 92 space lot earlier this year, and hiring an off duty police officer and traffic marshals to direct the traffic for Jummah prayer services. The fire marshals notify people to pray at the Sheraton hotel nearby when the MIC parking lot is full. These volunteers, he says, have a tough job because they cannot ticket someone for parking in the Carrington neighborhood because there are no parking restrictions on any of the adjacent neighborhood roads. However, they can prevent them from entering MIC on grounds of trespassing as a way to uphold the restrictions in their Parking Management Plan (PMP). Regarding noise, Murphy stated that they have used a sensor to test the noise in the parking lot and it found the noise generated to be within allowable range.
At the end of the hearing the BZA decided to defer yet again to Dec 12, 2018, as they needed more time to review the new videos from the opposition and the public testimonies. The upcoming hearing will be a “decision only” hearing, meaning they will accept clarifications, supplemental evidence, and public input in the coming weeks, but will not hear any public testimony on the 12th.
Many attendees at the hearing opposed BZA’s decision. Tony Sarver, a U.S. History and Civics teacher in the area spoke in support of MIC at the hearing, but believed that the BZA made a terrible decision in deferring yet again. According to him, the BZA had all the information necessary to make a decision and the opposition used the videos as a delaying tactic.
MIC board members Chaudhry and Carpenter both agreed that a deferment was expected, and that it’s not unusual for the BZA to defer cases like this when there is material left to review. Chaudhry believes that “the BZA is fair and are trying their best to separate subjective sentiments from the actual data and reports being put in front of them.” He thinks that three of the most salient reports are the VDOT conclusions, the FCDOT report, and the comments from the County Staff. All three organizations, he says, have recommended approval of the application to the BZA.
When asked about what their next steps will be Carpenter said that MIC will “follow up with BZA and help answer any open questions and address concerns they may have.” Both MIC and Blakely, under request of the BZA, have agreed to work together to see if the parties can resolve any of the outstanding issues. The Board also indicated its interest in reviewing a revised PMP that will outline MIC's obligations toward its neighbors regarding parking.
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