Every Friday, members of the Al Hadi Association gather for prayers in a building owned by the Lakeville school district. It’s a cramped, rented space, with other tenants scattered throughout the building who must work around others’ schedules.
So members of the group rejoiced in June, when the southern suburb’s planning commission recommended the City Council approve a necessary permit for their proposed 3,600-square-foot mosque. The mosque, the second that could be approved in Lakeville in less than a year, reflects the shifting demographics of a once more racially and religiously homogenous community.
“Just like any other religious institute, we have the community need to run our services as well as the programs for our youth, so they can understand our faith,” said Muhammad Shabaz, a leader of the nonprofit association that organizes prayers at a rental location. “So that is the reason we are looking for a bigger space.”
Shabaz said it could be a year before the permanent building opens if plans proceed without a hitch. But the endorsement from Lakeville officials represents an important milestone for the growing Muslim community, which has advocated for years for permanent mosques in the suburb.
It’s unclear exactly how many Muslim residents live in Lakeville, but there’s no question the area is growing more diverse. The suburb is one of the fastest growing in the Twin Cities area with nearly 80,000 residents, and its population of people of color doubled between 2014 and 2024, census data shows.
At the planning commission meeting, two residents worried that the mosque off Kenwood Trail could increase traffic around a nearby apartment complex for seniors, but Shabaz said the association has a detailed plan to address these concerns.
Nearly 20 people — Muslim and non-Muslim — expressed their overwhelming support for the Al-Hadi mosque, arguing it will foster a sense of belonging and strengthen relationships between religious communities in Lakeville.
“I believe Lakeville will be stronger when people of different traditions are able to practice their faith openly and peacefully,” said Jay Perske, a local pastor and director of Sarreen Ministries, a Christian group dedicated to “building bridges” with Somali and Muslim Minnesotans.
The City Council is set to vote on the permit in August.
Mosques in Twin Cities suburbs
Shabaz said the Al Hadi Association has quickly outgrown the rental space.
“That’s why we are looking for a bigger space and a permanent space, where we have a little bit more liberty to run the programs based on our need,” Shabaz said.
Last year, many Muslim residents made a similar argument when they implored the City Council to approve what will become Lakeville’s first mosque. Before that, neighbors had to travel to mosques in Rosemount and Burnsville to pray.
Suburbs across the Twin Cities have diversified in recent years, with people of color making up roughly one-third of the population across the seven-county metro as of 2024. But attempts to build mosques in mostly white cities haven’t always gone smoothly.
In Lino Lakes, a group of residents fiercely objected to a plan to build a large housing development featuring a mosque in 2024. Opponents fretted the development would strain the suburb’s water system, roads and schools. Supporters argued some detractors’ comments were rooted in Islamophobia.
Still, there are signs that mosques have become part of the cultural fabric in the Twin Cities. In 2023, Minneapolis became the first major U.S. city to allow unfettered broadcast of all five Muslim daily prayer calls over speakers.
‘This is our home’
Shabaz praised Lakeville staff for their clear communication as the Al Hadi Association navigates the often thorny process of applying to build a religious institution.
At the recent Planning Commission meeting, Shabaz listened as Lakeville resident Dean Johnson shared concerns from residents in his senior apartment building over the mosque’s potential to compound traffic, create parking difficulties and worsen noise pollution.
“It’s not about your religion or the mosque,” Johnson said. “We just feel that it’s in the wrong spot.”
Shabaz said the mosque plans to deploy volunteers to help control traffic, and 59 parking spots will be located close to the building and prevent spillage into the neighborhood: “We will be on top of it to overcome their concern about the traffic.”
For Lakeville resident Ziad Asim, whether the city approves the mosque isn’t a simple municipal rubber stamp — it’s an expression that Lakeville is a place for everyone.
“Lakeville is a city that has grown stronger because it welcomes people from different backgrounds who share the same goals,” Asim said. “The families supporting Al-Hadi mosque are already your neighbors, co-workers, business owners, health care workers, engineers, teachers and taxpayers. We are invested in the success of the city because this is our home.”