Township Appeals Judge's Ruling on Mosque

Bridgewater Township has filed an appeal of the ruling by a federal judge that requires the Planning Board to revisit the Al Falah Center's proposed mosque, according to a report on MyCentralJersey.com.

The mosque has been proposed for the former Redwood Inn site, on Mountain Top Road, but after months of contentious hearings—and the township's passage of a zoning ordinance barring religious institutions away from major roadways—the project was denied by the Planning Board.

After Al Falah Center sued the township seeking to have the denial overturned, federal judge Michael Shipp, sitting in U.S. District Court in Trenton, ruled the township must reconsider the application, but without considering the township ordinance. 

The report posted Wednesday said the township is planning public hearings on the application at Bridgewater-Raritan High School on Dec. 10 and Dec. 18.

The township is reported to also have requested a stay of the judge's order, noting that without it, the Planning Board may be forced to approve an application under terms that won't exist if the township's litigation is successful.

According to the report, the township is arguing Judge Shipp had relied on inappropriate case law in his ruling, noting the center could still apply for a conditional use variance for the property. Bridgewater's argument also challenges the federal court's jurisdiction in the case.