Mosque wants to expand parking lot

The Islamic Community Center of Des Plaines has proposed an expansion of its parking lot to fix on-street neighborhood parking woes, but some neighbors don't think it'll solve much.

The mosque, 480 Potter Road, purchased four nearby parcels and plans to pave over them, adding 81 parking spots that would be used from noon to 3 p.m. during Friday services and from 8 p.m. to midnight during the month of Ramadan.

The mosque's leaders have also proposed a parking plan that would allow for as many as 38 cars to be parked in valet style within drive aisles during those times, bringing the total number of vehicles on site to 244.

The city council Monday delayed a vote on issuing a conditional use permit for the parking lot expansion but is expected to take up the issue again Nov. 3.

The mosque has grown from the days it started within the basement of a single-family home in the late 1980s. The existing two-story building with 3,200 square feet of worship space was built in 1999. The parking lot was expanded in 2010, adding 23 spaces.

Officials say they've purchased properties to expand on-site parking and alleviate congestion in the surrounding residential neighborhood, and they're talking with nearby businesses to see if worshippers can use their parking lots.

Some neighbors, though, think the expanded parking lot will do little to solve congestion problems.

Dan Ryan, who lives just south of the mosque near Ironwood Drive and Suffield Street, said the new lot would be a temporary fix. He said he's asked the center's leaders how large they anticipate their congregation will become, since they've said they cannot turn any worshippers away.

"It was a residential area," Ryan said. "Now it's becoming urban."

Ahmed Rehab, a member of the congregation, said the new parking lot would be the "most reasonable" step to solving parking issues in the neighborhood. He said mosque leaders have tried to find other potential locations for a place of worship in Des Plaines, but the best location is on Potter.

"This is something that matters to me as a Muslim and as a resident of Des Plaines," Rehab said. "All we're asking for here is to help us help the streets and help the area."