South Sydney residents protest controversial mosque development

Protesters are gathering at a Sydney council over a controversial plan, amid allegations of “intimidation” leaving locals scared to speak out.

South Sydney residents campaigning against a proposed 2000-square-metre mosque are holding a protest outside a council meeting today, where they fear the development will be pushed through.

The proposed mosque on Botany Street in Carlton has attracted fierce opposition since the development application was first lodged in December 2019, with more than 4300 local residents raising objections in submissions to the council.

They say they do not oppose the mosque for religious reasons, but its location on the site of the shuttered Botany Gardens Nursing Home.

Residents have raised concerns about traffic congestion and noise pollution on the quiet suburban street.

“There is a lot of opposition from the local population,” said local resident George, who lives 200 metres from the site.

“The area is very close to the technical high school, four or five other schools. People are concerned because of the traffic, the noise. It’s a very small area, there’s no parking. It’s madness.”

A flyer for Thursday’s council protest.

Georges River Council’s Local Planning Panel deferred a decision on the mosque in August to request additional information from the applicants.

A final decision is expected to be made at today’s LPP meeting at midday – and residents fear their concerns will be ignored.

“The Georges River Council has not respected most residents’ opinions and has recommended the DA to build one of southern Sydney’s biggest mosques,” a flyer for Thursday’s protest reads.

“We oppose it not for religious reasons but for its location. The proposed development would create additional congestion and related safety concerns, for both vehicular and pedestrian. The surrounding roads couldn’t cope with the increase of traffic.”

The proposed site of the mosque on Botany Street in Carlton. Picture: Google Maps

George, a mechanical engineer by trade who works in occupational health and safety, said he had carefully reviewed an acoustic report conducted for the developers, and that there were “many gaps and inconsistencies”.

The mosque is proposed to have a maximum 120-person capacity and 22 car spaces, with operating hours from 5.30am to 9.55pm Monday to Sunday.

“A patronage size of 100 will only occur once per week (Friday midday prayer) with other prayer services attracting a maximum of 20 people,” the acoustic report says.

“Up to 10 times per year, (typically expected to be public holidays that fall on a Friday, and first two and last two days of Ramadan), a maximum capacity of 120 is expected.”

The report said the primary noise emissions would be from “on-site vehicle movements and carparking, breakout noise from internal areas and traffic generated on the public road system”.

More than 4300 residents have submitted objections. Picture: A Current Affair

George, who asked not to use his last name due to “intimidation”, said he was sceptical.

“Who’s going to police if it’s 20, 50, 100 people?” he said.

“If someone tells me there won’t be any noise pollution, it’s a lie. Does Colorbond provide any noise protection? If you see the area, it’s absolutely physically unsuitable for a mosque.”

George said he expected around 50 to 70 people to attend Thursday’s protest.

Earlier this year, Nine’s A Current Affair reported that tensions in the small suburb were escalating, with supporters of the proposed mosque caught stealing signs erected by residents opposing the project.

CCTV footage showed a small group of young men removing a sign from a front fence, while locals photographed other men making off with signs from their properties.

Dianne, who has lived on Botany Street with her parents her whole life, told the program there had been an increasing amount of “hostility” and people were now “refusing to come out because we are scared”.

Men pictured stealing signs protesting the mosque. Picture: A Current Affair

“But some of the things we are hearing as people pass by is, ‘We are coming’, ‘It’s a done deal’, ‘You can’t stop us’,” she said.

“It’s a democratic right [to protest]. We are not harming anyone. There is nothing on the signs offensive or rude.”

Due to Covid-19 restrictions, a community engagement webinar was conducted last year where the project team responded to questions from residents.

But many said they felt the process had been rushed through while residents had been unable to meet and organise.

The day before the August meeting, state Labor leader and local member Chris Minns urged the council’s mayor to postpone the meeting.

“The residents … are in lockdown, under stay-at-home orders, subject to a curfew and unable to have physical contact with people they do not live with,” Mr Minns said in a letter.

“Residents are unable to meet, organise, scrutinise or communicate in person with each other before the decision is made.”

News.com.au understands Mr Minns has met with local residents several times, most recently in November.

After that meeting, he wrote again to the Georges River Council calling for an extension of time for residents to respond to the additional information lodged by the applicant.

Local residents claim they have been intimidated. Picture: A Current Affair

George said it was “curious” as Carlton did not have a large Muslim population.

According to the 2016 Census, Carlton has a large Chinese population of 18.8 per cent, with English, Australian, Greek and Macedonian the other main ancestry responses.

Around 5 per cent of respondents, or about 560 people, reported speaking Arabic at home.

In the community webinar, some residents questioned why the mosque was needed in Carlton when there was a “huge mosque” in nearby Arncliffe.

“The longstanding Arabic-speaking Muslim population in the area have unfortunately never had an appropriate permanent place of worship, and with members of the local Muslim community ageing, they are unable to travel further afield to the Arabic-speaking mosques in the Greater Sydney region,” the project team responded.

“The mosque located in Arncliffe is a Shia Islam mosque, and practices different religious ceremonies to the Muslim community.”

The local council is expected to make a final decision today. Picture: A Current Affair

Responding to concerns about capacity at the site being expanded, the developers stressed that maximum number of worshippers laid out in the application would be adhered to.

“There are no plans to expand the proposed capacity for the mosque,” they wrote.

“All community activities will be within the planning approvals and the operation guidelines of the mosque will be strictly adhered to. Patrons wishing to enter the site once at capacity will not be allowed to enter and attend prayer.”

Prior to the August planning meeting, Muslim leader Keysar Trad, a close friend of the developers, said the mosque would benefit the community.

“We should give these people a chance and see what beautiful friendships emerge,” Mr Trad told A Current Affair.

“They want to be model citizens as they have been throughout their lives and they want to make sure that this mosque will be a centre of pride for the whole area. We’ve never had any problems with churches being on our streets. I don’t know why we are now raising issues with mosques.”

A spokeswoman for Georges River Council declined to comment, saying a statement would be issued after a decision had been reached.