Justice Department Sues Sterling Heights for Blocking Mosque

From a WXYZ report in September.

The Justice Department has decided to do battle with the city of Sterling Heights, and on Thursday filed a lawsuit in Detroit alleging that officials blocked construction of a mosque based on religious discrimination.

“The Constitution protects the rights of religious communities to create the institutions and physical spaces they need to observe and practice their faith free from discriminatory barriers,” saysl Vanita Gupta, a principal deputy assistant attorney general who heads the Civil Rights Division.

The Justice Department will continue to aggressively protect the rights of all communities to live, pray and worship free from religious discrimination and substantial burdens in local land use decisions.”

Specifically, the suit alleges that the city broke a 2000 law -- the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act -- by denying special land use approval to let the American Islamic Community Center build a mosque on five lots. 

The Madison Heights mosque wanted to move to Sterling Heights because it's more convenient for members and its current space has become inadequate for its religious, educational and social needs, the Justice Department says in a media release. 

“We are alleging that Sterling Heights discriminated against the American Islamic Community Center on the basis of religion and placed a substantial burden on the community’s ability to exercise its religion by denying approval to build a mosque," Detroit U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade says in a statement. "We filed this lawsuit to protect the rights of all of our citizens to freely practice their religion and have a place to gather with members of their community.”

A city statement says it has been inclusive of many groups and says is disappointed with the lawsuit. An excerpt:

With the above in mind, the City has cooperated fully with the Department of Justice in this matter, and is surprised and disappointed in its decision to initiate this lawsuit at this time. The City maintains that the AICC application for special approval land use to construct a mosque was considered and denied by the City's Planning Commission based on established land use criteria including the incompatibility with adjoining uses, insufficient parking, as well as overall size and height of the building, and not emotional feelings tied to religious beliefs either for or against the applicant.

The City welcomes the AICC along with any other religious groups to Sterling Heights and we will continue an open dialog to address areas of disagreement with respect to land use.