Lakeville Planning Commission Backs New Al-Hadi Mosque
TLDR
The Lakeville Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend approval of a new Al-Hadi Association mosque at 17732 Junelle Path.
It took a nearly 90-minute hearing with 20-plus speakers — most in support, a few neighbors opposed over traffic, parking, and drainage.
The plan: a ~3,600-square-foot mosque with 59 parking spaces on a wooded 3.75-acre lot.
The final decision is up to the city council on July 6, 2026.
The biggest item at Lakeville's June 18 planning commission meeting wasn't a strip mall or a subdivision — it was a mosque. The Al-Hadi Association has outgrown its rented space and wants to build a permanent home on Junelle Path. After a long public hearing, the commission backed the plan. Here's what's actually in it, who spoke, and what happens next.
What's Being Proposed
Al-Hadi, a Muslim congregation that's been part of Lakeville since 2019, currently rents space in an older building. The group bought a 3.75-acre lot at 17732 Junelle Path — a wooded site with a 1922 farmhouse — and wants to build a new mosque there.
The building would run about 3,600 square feet and stand around 32 feet tall, under the city's 35-foot limit for that zone. The minaret — a tall, narrow tower — would reach about 38 feet, but the city exempts religious features like that from the height cap. The exterior is mostly brick and glass. Roughly half the lot, the steep wooded eastern part, would be left untouched.
Two permits were on the table: one to allow a religious institution in a single-family residential zone (Lakeville allows this with a conditional use permit), and one to allow more parking than the city normally permits.
Why Parking Was a Whole Conversation
Here's the wrinkle. The city's code sets a minimum number of parking spaces based on the building's capacity — about 39 for this mosque. But it also caps parking at 125% of that minimum (about 49 spaces) so lots don't turn into oceans of asphalt. Al-Hadi wants 59 — so it needed a second permit to go over the cap.
Why more? Junelle Path is posted no-parking, so there's no street parking to lean on. Staff said the main prayer hall is designed for about 118 people, and 59 spaces would comfortably cover a typical crowd. An Al-Hadi representative told the commission they'd also station trained volunteers to direct traffic at the exit during Friday prayers and bigger events.
What the Neighbors Said
Most of the room was in support. More than a dozen members and neighbors — including a local pastor and a church member who described sharing a Ramadan meal with the congregation — spoke about community, belonging, and getting to know one another.
But a few neighbors weren't sold. Residents from the Argonne Fields townhomes and the senior apartment building next door raised concerns about traffic on the dead-end street, whether 59 spaces is really enough as the congregation grows, lighting near their windows, and runoff from a new parking lot. One neighbor speaking for the senior building said roughly 76 residents shared those worries. Several were careful to say the issue wasn't the religion — it was the building and its impact on a quiet street.
How Staff Answered
City staff and engineers walked through the big questions:
Traffic: Staff estimated about 70 people across two Friday services — roughly 35–40 cars — plus 8–10 people stopping by on an average day. That's in line with what a normal housing development on the same land would generate, they said. Junelle Path is also wider than a standard residential street.
Stormwater: The plan includes a private pond and a rain garden, and Al-Hadi would sign a maintenance agreement with the city. Lakeville reviews these as the local watershed authority.
Utilities: Water and sewer stubs were installed back in 2004, so the old well and septic get retired. The project also adds an easement so the neighbor to the north can connect to city utilities in the future.
Lighting: Staff said the lighting plan comes in well under the city's limits, with no parking-lot lights proposed.
On the concern that the mosque would run from before dawn to late at night, staff and the applicant clarified the building's operating hours would be 1–9 p.m. — the early-morning and late prayer times listed on Al-Hadi's website don't all mean the building is open and full.
What the City Can — and Can't — Do
The city attorney reminded everyone that a conditional use permit is close to a permitted use. The commission acts a bit like a judge: it checks whether a project meets the rules and can attach reasonable conditions tied to health, safety, and welfare — but it has limited room to flatly deny a project that qualifies. Staff said this one meets the city's standards and fits the long-term comprehensive plan, which allows religious institutions in residential areas by permit. It's the same CUP framework the commission uses for everything from churches to the indoor sports facility it cleared earlier this year.
The Bottom Line
The commission voted unanimously to recommend approval, with seven conditions. But this isn't the final word. The city council takes it up on July 6, 2026 — another public hearing where you can speak, for or against. If you live near Junelle Path, that's the meeting to watch. (For context on how busy Lakeville's land-use calendar has been lately, see our June 4 planning commission recap.)
FAQ
Where exactly is this going? 17732 Junelle Path, a 3.75-acre wooded lot in the Argonne Farms area, near the Argonne Village shopping center and Cub Foods.
Is it approved? The planning commission recommended approval, but the city council makes the final decision on July 6, 2026.
How big is it, and how many people? About 3,600 square feet, with a main prayer hall designed for roughly 118 people and 59 parking spaces.
What were the main objections? Traffic on a dead-end street, whether parking is enough, lighting, and stormwater runoff — raised mostly by the neighboring townhomes and senior apartments.
Isn't this the same as the mosque approved last year? No. That was a different congregation — the Muslim American Society's Lakeville Masjid, in an existing building. This is Al-Hadi's new, purpose-built mosque.
