By Parwez Wahid
Wayland, Massachusetts: Members of the Islamic Center of Boston (ICB) approved a $3.5 million construction project to expand their existing building located in Wayland, Massachusetts. The ICB members gathered for a general assembly meeting held on January 18 in the Center’s prayer hall; Dres Djermon, President of the ICB conducted the meeting.
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The present campus of the Islamic Center of Boston in Wayland, Mass.
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The Islamic Center of Boston was founded in 1979 by Muslims living in and around Boston. The ICB originally operated from a rented location in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 1986 the ICB purchased property on Boston Post Road in Wayland that comprised of an old house located on a large, mostly undeveloped plot. It was envisioned that the larger undeveloped portion of the lot could be cleared for the construction of a new religious center.
The ICB operated its religion classes and prayer services from the old house for several years. During this time some minor renovations were performed on the old house to make it more usable. While operating from the old house, the ICB also cleared the rear section of its property for building construction. By 1992 the ICB completed construction of its present main building. Located in the back section of the property, this building includes a prayer hall, twelve classrooms and a large kitchen making up 5,200 square feet. In addition to the main building, additional parking spaces were added.
At present the ICB campus is comprised of the renovated old house and the main building that was completed in 1992. From these facilities the ICB has provided regular prayer service and religion classes on Sundays. Also the Center has provided Iftar gatherings during Ramadan, Eid prayers, interfaith meetings and forums for various topics of community develop ment. The facilities are also available for private gatherings.
Within just a few years of completing the main building the ICB found that it had outgrown this new construction as the Muslim community continued its steady growth. Parking became difficult during Friday prayers and during other large gatherings. As far back as 1996 the ICB membership had been considering different choices on how best to increase its facilities.
In 1998 the Center purchased a plot of land next to its Wayland campus. Most of it was unusable due to conservation issues but there was sufficient land to expand the Center’s parking area. However, the ICB continued to experience space problems. This was felt particularly during religion classes with over-crowed classrooms and no place for parents to wait while the classes were in session.
In 2001 the ICB’s Building Committee embar
ked on a mission to identify a viable plan for expansion of the Center. In April 2002 an ambitious design was unveiled that would result in demolition and removal of the old house, and then lead to the construction of a two-storied expansion of the main building. The expansion project increases the overall square footage to 19,200 square feet. The new design will include a prayer hall that is 50% larger than the current prayer area, a second floor and basement (to be used for storage), conference room, library and offices, expanded bathrooms and additional bathrooms on the second floor, an elevator, a remodeled and expanded kitchen, a new social hall and gathering area that is separate from the prayer hall, and a more accessible cloak room.
The front façade of the new building will provide an Islamic architectural look to the structure, while it would be environmentally suited for the harsh, cold weather that the northeast region experiences. The new construction project has been estimated at $3.5 million.
Before approval of the project some concerns were raised over the cost of the expansion. Rather than taking on a $3.5 million construction project, several alternatives were discussed. While all proposals had certain merit, the members felt that the Center was now committed to completing the project that it had been pursuing for several years. The ICB membership voted 145 out of 170 to approve the new construction plans.
(This writer acknowledges Mr. Imran Khan of the ICB Building Committee for providing many facts and figures reported in this article.)