Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Staten Island Mosque Voted Down
By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 22, 2010
Modified Jul 22, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 22, 2010
Modified Jul 22, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The mosque proposed for Staten Island has been voted down by the church that was going to sell the property to The Muslim American Society [MAS]. You'll recall that the pastor of the church had quietly signed a contract to sell the old convent to MAS, and then some Staten Island locals (i.e. NYC rednecks) caught wind of it, and held ugly protests to stop it, because it would have "made it difficult to find parking." It's also probably too close to Ground Zero, and would stab poor Sarah Palin in the heart. Or as one protester put it, "We just want to leave our neighborhood the way it is—Christian, Catholic."
The church's pastor changed his mind in the midst of the uproar, and since the contract stipulated that the sale had to be approved by the board of trustees of St. Margaret Mary’s Roman Catholic Church, today the decision was reversed, according to SI Live. Chalk another one up for Real America! The church won't get its $750,000, the convent will remain empty and fall into disrepair, and the residents of Midland Beach will never be terrorized by an anti-American lack of parking.
Tagged
convent
islam
muslim american society
staten island mosque
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Deer are all over New Jersey roads looking for sex, state officials warn
Mid-October through mid-December is deer mating season, which can be a danger to drivers as the sex-seeking creatures cross roadways throughout the Garden State.
By
Rosemary Misdary
Published Oct 16, 2026
Man messaged 'I got straight poison' before giving NYC college students fentanyl, feds say
A transcript from an April court hearing sheds new light on what transpired at Fashion Institute of Technology.
By
Samantha Max
News
Man messaged 'I got straight poison' before giving NYC college students fentanyl, feds say
A transcript from an April court hearing sheds new light on what transpired at Fashion Institute of Technology.
By
Samantha Max
Inside the plan to fix the nearly collapsed Pfizer Building, 1/64th of an inch at a time
By
David Brand
School bus carrying autistic students got lost in Brooklyn for 4 hours last year
By
Jessica Gould
NYC’s bridges can last 'forever,' if we take care of them
By
Clayton Guse
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .