“A MOSQUE in Bracknell will be invaluable” — that’s the message from just one of the hundreds of supporters of plans for a new Islamic Community Centre as designs are set to be approved.
Proposals to convert a vacant plot at Waterside Park on Cookham Road into a place for the Muslim community to gather have been in the pipeline since 2017 and this ambition could be made a reality in the coming days.
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Bracknell Forest Council (BFC) planning chiefs are set to say yes to plans submitted by the Bracknell Islamic Cultural Society (BICS).
This comes after 190 objections were sent to BFC from neighbours against 684 letters of support.
Although as reported by the News in October 2019, around 200 of these letters of support are from addresses in Bracknell Forest, with the rest coming from other parts of Berkshire and other parts of the UK, including Birmingham, Blackpool and Norwich.
One supporter from an address in Bracknell wrote: “I believe this will be a great addition to [the] community.
“Muslims desperately need a place of worship in Bracknell which is a lovely community to live in.
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“All faiths are entitled to a dedicated place of worship. Currently Muslims need to travel as far as Reading or Slough for vital services.
“A mosque in Bracknell will be invaluable.”
Those who object to the plan say there are not enough car parking spaces at the site (42 bays are allocated for the empty unit) which could lead to an increase in traffic and people parking on the street.
Objectors have also raised concerns about the loss of office space and noise coming from the site affecting neighbouring properties.
One wrote: “This will bring too much traffic to an already congested part of the town.
“Most of the comments of support are not even from Bracknell so they will not even use the Islamic centre or be affected by the parking issues.”
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To deal with the potential parking issues, BFC bosses have proposed prayer space on Fridays is limited to a maximum of 80 people, split into three sessions starting 40 minutes apart.
It is expected 51 people will get to the site by car for each session, but the BICS has been told it must promote car-sharing as a way of getting to the estate.
It has also been suggested a BICS shuttle bus operates every Friday between a public car park and the Cookham Road site in the early hours of the afternoon.
A pedestrian crossing could be added across the northern part of Cookham Road to encourage more people to walk to the site.
Officers have recommended the proposals are approved but councillors will have the final say at a planning meeting on Thursday, March 19.
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