Huge Mosque Proposed For Stratford

Plans have been floated for a gigantic new mosque and cultural centre in Stratford near the site of the forthcoming 2012 Olympics at Abbey Mills.

Designed by MYAA Architects it is specifically engineered to appear as a tent city, the sort of thing that is a central part of the pilgrimage journey of the many millions who visit Mecca every year, whilst retaining a more modern aeomebic zoomorphic form. It will be flanked on the edge of the site by a number of traditional minarets.

At night the main building of the complex has been designed to be a beacon of God, the translucent panels that clad it will be backlit to create a glowing structure the developers hope will serve as a spiritual lighthouse.

The interior will have 50,000 square metres of space, and enough surface area on the inside walls for the entirety of the Koran to be written down.

As well as facilities for worship there will be residential accommodation, a school, youth facilities and a massive dining area to not only create a self contained Islamic community but also provide the necessary facilities to accommodate the thousands of travelling muslims it is expected to attract each year.

These different areas will be layered around a central garden with zones for contemplation, ritual, ablution and congregation and prayer.

In an attempt to show that they are doing something modern the campus is heavily linked to environmentalism, there will be wind turbines mounted on the minarets, the water features will utilise tidal power and there will be a large number of P.V panels installed in an attempt to align environmentalism and Islamic teaching.

The sprawling complex they hope will accommodate up to 40,000 worshippers at any one time, an unprecedented amount for any place of worship in the country but something they hope can be realised thanks to the close proximity it will have to the excellent transport links that the 2012 Olympics will provide for the area.

Controversy has already grown thanks to the alleged links one of the backers, Tablighi Jamaat, is believed by the Americans to have to Islamic terrorist and insurgent groups.

Any large mosque is bound to be controversial amongst many locals, but this will be even more so thanks to the football stadium-like capacity it can hold, an issue that numerous public inquiries have been fought over in the past. Whether such a large project can actually get through the planning system remains to be seen.