httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4odbbCGHyI

CAIR-Chicago welcomes today's decision by District Court Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer to deny DuPage County’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed against the county by the Irshad Learning Center, a Naperville mosque.

CAIR-Chicago welcomes today's decision by District Court Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer to deny DuPage County’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed against the county by the Irshad Learning Center, a Naperville mosque.

CAIR-Chicago's complaint alleges the Irshad Learning Center’s First and 14th Amendment rights were violated when county officials refused to grant a special use permit to open an Islamic worship site and school. Kevin Vodak, the attorney representing Irshad through the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations said the judge hopes to issue her ruling within the next couple of weeks.

A measure that could streamline the process of establishing places of worship and other forms of assembly in unincorporated DuPage County is heading to the zoning panel that recently has taken up two zoning proposals from Islamic groups.

CAIR-Chicago Staff Attorney Kevin Vodak talks to the Naperville Sun about recent developments in the Irshad Learning Center's lawsuit against Dupage County.

The Naperville Sun's Susan Carlman illustrates a regular day for congregants at the Irshad Learning Center. The ILC recently made headlines when the DuPage County Board rejected their request for a zoning permit to build an Islamic School. CAIR-Chicago is suing DuPage county on the ILC's behalf.

[CAIR-Chicago Staff Attorney Kevin Vodak] said the group followed proper procedures over the 17 months of meetings and hearings that preceded his office being retained. "Throughout the process, they were attempting to provide (concessions) in the hope of appeasing the neighbors," Vodak said. "They expended a lot of effort and funds trying to get that done."

The Council on American-Islamic Relations filed the suit in federal court in Chicago on behalf of the Irshad Learning Center, which had been proposed for a 2.91-acre site on 75th Street between Wehrli Road and Naper Boulevard in an unincorporated area near Naperville.

"the fight's not over, and they will try to appeal the decision," Amina Sharif, the nonprofit's communications coordinator, said. "We are concerned that anti-Muslim sentiments expressed during the meeting may have wrongly influenced the decision," she said. "That is something that concerns us, and that we may challenge."

"We fear that the board may have acted on improper factors in rejecting the Irshad Learning Center's permit, and we will continue to pursue this matter in hopes of achieving a just resolution," said Kevin Vodak, attorney with the Chicago office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which will be representing Irshad as it considers appealing the county's ruling.