MANASSAS, Va. — A new mosque and school is open for business on Euclid Avenue in Manassas.
Jamiah Masjid, which means “big mosque,” successfully petitioned city officials for a special use permit to operate in their new facility in an area once known for heavy industrial uses. It took four years for the Manassas Muslim Association to jump through the hoops of opening their new facility, and they say the wait was worth it.
“When we looked at the size of property, the parking, the building met our needs, and the location it was in the heart of the city,” Muneer Baig, president of the association. “When we looked at the list of our needs and then compared it to the building, it was check, check, check.”
The mosque is located at 9059 Euclid Avenue, near a mega used car store and Osbourn Park High School. It is one of several spaces the church has occupied. Before this, the Muslim association was housed in a small building off Manassas Drive in Manassas Park. They later met at the Manassas Park Community Center at Costello Park prior to moving to Euclid Avenue.
The city council’s decision to approve the special use permit for the mosque comes after another mosque in Prince William County was vandalized last week, and controversy has sparked in the Nokesville area after another group of Muslims wants announced plans to build a mosque off Vint Hill Road.
“People have been driving down street and shouting ‘go back Home,’ but, for us, this is home. Many of us were born here. We all belong here and we all need to learn to work together to prosper,” said Baig.
Manassas City Councilman Mark Wolfe, whose son was shot and killed while serving during the war in Iraq, agrees. He was invited by the mosque to speak at a recent celebration during the holy month Ramadan.
“We talked about why he [Wolfe’s son] was there… he was fighting for our away of life,” said Wolfe. “Our way of life respects religious freedom, and it’s not for me to judge other people… when the Muslims Association came forward and asked for the SUP to be approved, they have to be viewed as any other group looking for a place for worship.”
In addition to a school for small children, Jamiah Masjid will offer training in information technology for adults at discounted rates in an effort to help more residents find work. Since the mosque isn’t heavy industrial, the association hopes theirs is the first of many new buildings to pop up along Euclid Avenue that fall outside of industrial uses.
“[The SUP process] helped us better understand how things work, and it allowed the city to see what needs to the done to see what it needs to do to meet 21st century demands,” said Baig.
