Broadmeadows Progress Association heads John and Sonya Rutherford have lost their appeal against plans for a Shi’ite mosque in Coolaroo.
Hume council granted a permit for the Kyabram Street mosque in September last year and the Rutherfords have now lost their appeal at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
Objections were based on proximity of the mosque to a Syrian Christian church next door and the trauma this would engender for Syrian Christians persecuted by fundamentalist Islamists in the Middle East.
More than a thousand objectors from St Mary’s Ancient Church of the East community crowded out the council meeting when the decision to grant the permit was taken last year.
Although not officially joined by the church in their appeal, the Rutherfords and seven other BPA members objected to the council’s decision and were recently heard by a two-person VCAT panel, comprising planning experts Mark Dwyer and Michael Deidun.
“This case presents a challenging set of circumstances where either the grant or refusal of a permit has the potential to cause affront to one section of the local community or another, along with rising tensions,” an official summary of the panel’s decision notes.
“However, Australia has a rich and proud history of welcoming all religions, and not unreasonably restricting the place where people choose to practice their own faith.
“It is also a society where people of different faiths can live, work and worship side-by-side, without fear of threats, intimidation or violence.”
The panel stated it would be “a very poor outcome for planning in Victoria if town planning decisions were made to achieve an outcome that effectively replicates in Victoria the very same divisions, fear and distrust that have led people of all faiths to flee persecution and war overseas.
“Town planning decisions should not set out to separate people, or the use of land, based on ethnicity or religion.
“If anything, planning should provide the opportunity to support our diverse multicultural society and, in combination with other state laws, to promote tolerance and understanding within it.”
The panel upheld the council decision.
A spokesperson for Hume council said, in making its decision to approve the mosque, councillors had taken into account the significance of the application and believe “this is a fair outcome’’.
“VCAT, in making their decision, also acknowledged the role of council in such a significant planning matter,” the spokesperson said.
