Preston mosque plan: Government to hold public inquiry

The design was chosen in a Royal Institute of British Architects competition

The government will have the final say over whether a landmark mosque can be built at a busy junction in Preston.

The city's council granted planning permission for the building at the Broughton interchange, where the M6, M55 and A6 converge, in February.

The development divided public opinion, with supporters saying local Muslims "should not be deprived of a local place of worship".

However, many people raised concerns about its scale and impact on traffic.

More than 625 letters were lodged in favour of the scheme, however, there were also about 425 objections, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Plans mean the mosque could be built on elevated ground where the M6, M55 and A6 converge

Chris Hayward, director of development at Preston City Council, said he was "disappointed" by the government's decision to call in the plans and they were waiting for more information about a public inquiry that would reassess the application.

A planning inspector will then make a recommendation to Communities Secretary Michael Gove over whether he should approve or overturn the council's original permission.

The government told Preston City Council it was keen to know about "the extent to which the proposed development is consistent with the development plan for the area".

The mosque's design, which was chosen in a Royal Institute of British Architects competition, includes a 30m-high (98ft) minaret that looks like a Victorian mill chimney in a nod to Preston's industrial past.

The rest of the three-storey building, which could accommodate about 250 worshippers, is expected to have a maximum height of 12m (39ft) and sit on elevated ground.

The minaret design was inspired by a Victorian mill chimney, architects said

The planning application conflicted with a strategy in Central Lancashire to ensure only "small-scale" buildings should be permitted on plots such as the one proposed, the council noted.

There were also concerns over protecting areas of "open countryside", of which the proposed site is classed as one.

However, planning officers said the proposal conformed with other elements of local policy, such as fulfilling a need for a place for worship.

Transport concerns

Local Scout group leader Fatima Ismail previously told the council's planning committee that local Muslim families had "expressed concern about the lack of a place of worship where they can feel community and peace".

Councillor Graham Jolliffe, who asked the government to "call in" the mosque plan for consideration, said: "I'm not against the mosque in the right place, where there are good transport links and it is not going to cause disruption on a main artery in and out of the city.

"But my view is that this really is the wrong building in the wrong place and it is quite clearly an egregious breach of a variety of different planning rules."

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