By Samantha Christmann
Sunday May 16, 2021
Members of the Muslim Community Center and dignitaries including Rep. Brian Higgins and Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown attend special event marking the opening of the center's expanded area for services, a balcony area for women and a dome at the facility on Heim Road in Amherst, Saturday, May 15, 2021.John Hickey
When the Islamic Society of Niagara Frontier presented plans for its Muslim Community Center and mosque 30 years ago, some area residents fought against it. So, when it sought permits and approvals, it incorporated plans for three future expansion options.
"Since we had some opposition to the building of the center at the time, I thought we might as well incorporate the expansion now and go through the process once rather than having to go through it every time," said Khalid Qazi, the inaugural chairman of the Islamic Society and the driving force behind the Islamic Community Center from the beginning.
One of those plans has come to fruition with the completion of the center's recent expansion – a project that doubles the size of its mosque and better accommodates Amherst's growing Muslim population.
While many Muslim refugees have resettled in Western New York in recent years from places such as Somalia, Burma, Iraq, Iran and Vietnam, they are not the ones driving the most growth, Qazi said.Instead, he attributes the center's growth to generations of American Muslims whose families are growing. Also fueling growth are Muslims moving to Western New York from other parts of the country, such as the thousands of Bangladeshi families that have relocated from the New York City area over the past several years. Other contributing factors include extended family members reuniting in the area and professionals from Muslim countries who are given preferential immigration to help address worker shortages in the United States.
The center's membership officially encompasses 500 families, but far more people attend its worship services and events. The center serves the religious and cultural needs of the Muslim community, such as funerals, counseling and year-round weekend classes at its school, while offering services and events to interfaith communities. In addition to its mosque and community areas, it has banquet halls that host weddings, graduations and other celebrations.
In addition to doubling the prayer area of the mosque where worshippers have practiced in increasingly tight quarters, the expansion adds an exterior dome and parking spaces and addresses female community members' requests for a private balcony that fits 200 people. Work on the 8.4-acre Heim Road site concluded with tree planting that is part of the Islamic Society's mission to help fight climate change, Qazi said.
Construction was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic. The project required no financing and was fully funded by donations from community members.
And though the Muslim community faces some hostility in Western New York and beyond, the Muslim Community Center is better received than it was at its inception. The local Islamic Society has worked hard with the community at large to achieve that level of acceptance.
"We're not unknown like we were, back 40 years ago," Qazi said. "We are an integral part of the community and society."