Tag Archives: sharif el-gamal

park 51 rendering

Park 51 Continues to Make Progress

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park 51 rendering
Architectural rendering of Park51's planned futuristic design

NPR via The Real Deal reports that Park 51, the planned Islamic Cultural Center that has aroused intense ire from many Lower Manhattanites due to its planned proximity to Ground Zero, continues to make quiet progress.

Developer Sharif El-Gamal, CEO of Soho Properties, spoke to NPR about the project’s progress, which has remained out of the headlines in recent weeks. Gamal, who has invested several million into the project, said that the staff has compiled a presentation for potential investors and even applied for tax-exemption status last November.

Ground has yet to be broken but classes and prayer services are currently behind held in the existing structure. Gamal said that leaders of the project will now refrain from announcing possible imams or names of those involved in order to quell the public uproar; frequent announcements last Fall were often met with opposition from locals. Gamal did say that a new building for the center is still a good five years away from becoming a reality.

Additionally, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, the imam first associated with the center, is not involved any longer.

Park51’s plans are rather extensive, as it looks to include a museum, a memorial for September 11th, a meeting place for people of all faiths, a library, an auditorium, a pool, wellness, fitness and sports centers, a culinary school, child care facilities and a restaurant above a ground-floor mosque.

What is your opinion of Park51 at this point?

Imam Feisal Abdul Raif is leading the Ground Zero mosque building efforts

Ground Zero Mosque Gets New Imam

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Imam Feisal Abdul Raif is leading the Ground Zero mosque building efforts
Imam Feisal Abdul Raif is taking a reduced role in the Park 51 "Ground Zero Mosque"

The New York Times reports that there are some new issues surrounding the hot-button issues that is the planned “Ground Zero Mosque” AKA Park 51. Feisal Abdul Rauf, the mosque’s Imam, which is the prayer leader, will remain on the board of the Islamic Community Center and the mosque. But his role will be greatly reduced as a result; Abdul Rauf, who has gone on international and domestic speaking tours, will no longer raise funds for the project nor will he speak on its behalf.

Sharif el-Gamal, who is Abdul Rauf’s partner in the project and who owns the former coat store where the community center and mosque are planned, announced the split late last week.  It appears that Abdul Rauf was not “Lower Manhattan” enough for the project. “While Imam Feisal’s vision has a global scope and his ideals for the Cordoba movement are truly exceptional, our community in Lower Manhattan is local,” said Gamal in a statement. “Our focus is and must remain the residents of Lower Manhattan and the Muslim American community in the greater New York area.”

However, other sources have indicated that Abdul Rauf and Gamal also have opposing opinions on the size, scope, commerciality and the interfaith nature of the planned center. They even refer to the project by different names; Abdul Rauf called it “The Cordoba House” while Gamal referred to it as “Park 51,” which is also how most New Yorkers recognize it.

What are your thoughts on the Ground Zero Mosque/Park 51 in 2011?

park 51 rendering

Park51 Offering Public Information Sessions

Real Estate, ,

park 51 rendering
Architectural rendering of Park51's planned futuristic design

Manhattanites are divided over Park51, the planned community center funded by Muslims that will feature a Muslim prayer space referred to as “The Ground Zero Mosque,” being erected so close to former World Trade Center site. However, Park51 is offering a series of public information sessions over the next few months to educate both supporters and critics. According to Park51’s John Lichten, the weekly Q&A sessions will take place on Wednesdays, beginning this evening, and will run through December. Park51 developer Sharif El-Gamal will attend with the aim of describing the project and to answer probing, poignant questions.

Sessions will be limited to a dozen participants per week, so interested parties should email info@park51.org in advance of their preferred attendance date. The sessions are not open to the media.

According to DNA Info, Lichten stated that “very early on, there were a number of misconceptions about what we were doing. We’ve been trying to clear them up [and] we want to get what we’re doing out there to the people who need to hear it the most.”

Do you think these sessions will truly help concerned New Yorkers understand Park51’s goals?

Ground Zero Mosque

Park51 Location Chosen By 19 Year old Francisco Patino

Buildings, Real Estate, , , , , , , ,
Ground Zero Mosque
The planned location of the Park51 Mosque a.k.a "The Ground Zero Mosque"

He was 14 at the time of the September 11th attacks, probably unaware that merely 5 years later he would be responsible for finding one of the most controversial developments in the nation.

According to reports published in the New York Daily News today, Francisco Patino was working for developer Sharif El-Gamal to help research and find an appropriate location for the Park51 development.

“I told him to go out and find available buildings for the project, and he did. He’s a phenomenal kid,” Gamal is quoted in the same article, “We were looking at buildings all over the area. I liked a lot of them but this was the one we ended up on. It was just meant to be.”

Patino, 23, currently works at Chase Manhattan Bank and has gained notoriety as a contestant on “American Inventor” a popular TV show that aired in 2006.

The article also mentions, “Patino was barely a man in 2006 and had only come to this country when he was 12. No young newcomer could be expected to understand the sensitivities beneath the contradictions.”

Ground Zero Mosque

Developers Open to State Owned Options for Park 51 Mosque

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Ground Zero Mosque
The planned location of the Park51 Mosque a.k.a "The Ground Zero Mosque"

Developers of the Park51 center have said they are open to dialogue with Governor Paterson to discuss alternate location options for the mosque.

Earlier this week, Paterson held a press conference requesting an open discussion, “I think it’s rather clear that building a center there meets all the requirements, but it does seem to ignite an immense amount of anxiety among the citizen of New York and people everywhere, and I think not without cause.”

The effort is to ease the tension and nationwide scrutiny the Park51 development has caused. A CNN poll suggested that nearly 70% of all Americans across political and age lines were opposed to what has been dubbed the “Ground Zero Mosque.”

Although developer Shari El-Gamal is open to options, they have been focused in opening their Park51 center in Lower Manhattan, according to a report in today’s New York Daily News.

Paterson had suggested offering state-owned land for the project. Battery Park City is a state owned land in Lower Manhattan, as is Governor’s Island.

Opponents of the Park51 mosque are found nationwide.

CNN: 70% of All Americans Oppose Park51/Cordoba Mosque

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Opponents of the Park51 mosque are found nationwide.
Opponents of the Park51 mosque are found nationwide.

Results from a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll today shows that opposition to the Park51 mosque is not limited to New York City voters — but nationwide.

70 percent of all Americans oppose the plan to build a mosque 600 feet from the Ground Zero / World Trade Center site. While only 29 percent were in favor of the Park51 mosque.

In terms of the breakdown of those polled, opposition crossed all political lines and age demographics.

54 percent  of Democrats polled were against the development, while 82 percent of Republicans polled were against it. 70 percent of Independents polled were also against the building of the mosque.

6 in 10 people under the age of 50 oppose the plan.

These poll results come after a recent Quinnipiac poll determined that most New York voters were against the building of a mosque at Ground Zero.

The results from the poll are below:

Cnn Mosque Poll

Governor David Paterson

Governor Paterson Offers Relocation of Ground Zero Mosque

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Governor David Paterson
Governor David Paterson

The Associated Press is reporting that the Governor has offered state help to help the developers of the Park51 mosque if they are willing to relocate the project away from the surrounding Ground Zero area.

According to the report, Governor Paterson was quoted in a press conference today saying, “I think it’s rather clear that building a center there meets all the requirements, but it does seem to ignite an immense amount of anxiety among the citizen of New York and people everywhere, and I think not without cause.”

“I am very sensitive to the desire of those who are adamant against it to see something else worked out. We are really suffering in many respects — impassioned feelings were bound to emerge from a mosque just a couple of blocks from where nearly 3,000 people died at the hands of Muslim extremists.”

There was no comment yet from the developers of the project as well as from Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

According to the rest of the report, a recent Marist College poll released today found that 53 percent of New York City voters polled oppose the construction of the Ground Zero site, with only 34 percent favoring the developers plan.

Ground Zero Mosque

Another Hurdle for Park51 Mosque: Con Edison

Buildings, News, Real Estate, , , , , , , , , ,
Ground Zero Mosque
The planned location of the Ground Zero Mosque.

After clearing a vote against landmark status for 45-47 Park Place, another hurdle has emerged concerning the development of what has been dubbed “The Ground Zero Mosque” or the Park51 Mosque.

The mosque which is slated to be located at 45-51 Park Place, built on two parcels of land, is only half owned by the developers spearheading the project according to the NY Post which first broke the report over the weekend. The building at 45-47 Park Place, which had been undergoing landmark status hearings is owned by Soho Properties, the developers of Park51 — whilst the building at 49-51 Park Place is not. Park51 is named after the address 51 Park Place, the address in scrutiny.

More surprisingly, the owner of the other parcel of land is actually Con Edison. This information took even Community Board 1 proponents by surprise who had not heard of this revelation through its own hearings.

According to the article, “Sharif El-Gamal, the head of Soho Properties, first came forward in 2006 seeking to buy the empty building at 45-47 Park Place, said Melvin Pomerantz, whose family owned the property.

Pomerantz said El-Gamal eventually raised $4.8 million cash for 45-47 Park Place. El- Gamal paid an extra $700,000 to take over the lease with Con Ed for the building next door. The lease expires in 2071.”

The discrepancy emerged because the two buildings were connected years ago, as it housed a former Burlington Coat Factory and was generally assumed ownership for that entire parcel was under one ownership, without the Community Board #1’s knowledge that Soho Properties would be developing half of the site under paying a $33K a month lease to Con Ed.

Con Ed is appraising the property for a potential sale, “The utility is now doing an appraisal to determine the property value, and it would be up to El-Gamal to decide whether to accept the price, the utility said. The price is estimated at $10 million to $20 million.

“We are following our legal obligations under the lease. We will not allow other considerations to enter into this transaction,” Con Ed said.

The sale proposal will go to the Public Service Commission, where it could possibly face a vote by a five-member board controlled by Gov. Paterson,” according to the same article.

Do you think that this will be a significant hurdle for the Park51 Mosque?

Park51 Architecture may be influenced by Cooper Union and 7 World Trade Center

Sharif El-Gamal Sees Mosque As Empire State Building

Buildings, Real Estate, , , , , , , , , ,
Park51 Architecture may be influenced by Cooper Union and 7 World Trade Center
Park51 Architecture may be influenced by Cooper Union and 7 World Trade Center

The developer of the Park 51 mosque and community center, formerly known as the Cordoba Initiative — has put his ambitions on the record with the Wall Street Journal for the impending World Trade Center mosque to be a significant architectural structure in New York City.

“I want to build something that when people come to New York…that Park51 is on that red tour bus as something that they have to see because it’s one of the most significant buildings in New York City,” says El-Gamal in the Wall Street Journal.

El-Gamal’s architectural team could be a great indication of his potential success, but has not named a team just yet. However, he has noted that two buildings he considers great examples of the architectural direction of the mosque include the steely Cooper Union building in Astor place and the glass behemoth 7 World Trade Center building.

According to the same article it was noted that the design would evoke modernity and would not necessarily adopt a traditional mosque style, “It’s definitely going to be an expression of New York and of America,” Mr. El-Gamal said in an interview Friday, a few days after his project, now dubbed Park51, came under fire at a raucous Landmarks Preservation Commission hearing.”

The slated location for the Park51 mosque has already been converted into a makeshift mosque with nearly 400 Muslims who journey to the location at 45-51 Park Place for Friday prayer service.