The tension between the Muslim community and the rest of the neighbourhood started four or five years ago, when the new mosque was built at 9000 Bathurst St. The city gave developers strict rules, but developers went to the government and asked for an exemption to the city's parking lot bylaw. As a result, the mosque developers were permitted to build fewer parking spaces. The decision meant worshippers were forced to park on both sides of Bathurst, occasionally blocking driveways, squeezing traffic into a single lane in each direction and irking the residents of the street.

Tensions were high over the parking and resulting traffic slowdowns and when representatives from Jaffari went to the city with a new proposal in November 2013, the resentment rose to the surface.

The main opponents are being represented by the Preserve Thornhill Woods Association, a committee formed by the official Ratepayers Association for the residents of Thornhill Woods in Vaughan.

As of this week, 5,562 people have signed a petition opposing the rezoning and redevelopment of the 11-hectare property at 9000 Bathurst St., citing reasons ranging from increased traffic during peak hours to the proposed destruction of part of the Vaughan Glen Hospital Heritage Building nearby.

However, the opposition's biggest concern is that the City of Vaughan might approve a proposal that goes against its own legislation, which marks the land for low-density, low-rise development only.

The City of Vaughan passed an official building plan in 2010 that specified the land in question was a community area, and could only be used for schools, parks, community centres, libraries and low-rise housing.

According to the plan, buildings in the designated area cannot be taller than three storeys. The 61 townhouses proposed by Jaffari would be permitted, but the 17-storey condo towers would not.

Jordan Kalpin, who is leading the charge against the development, told CTVNews.ca that he believes that developers' deep pockets have been able to blind the city to its zoning bylaws, leaving residents to fend for themselves to defend their position. He said the mosque can afford the best lawyers, while community volunteers struggle with fundraising.

"It becomes a contest of who has the deepest pockets, and the sad thing is, the community will run out of money defending itself," Kalpin said.

Kalpin said that the Preserve Thornhill Woods Association has posted an open letter to the mosque asking for a compromise. The community doesn't have access to transit and roadways that would be necessary to support two condo buildings' worth of people, he said.

Members of the association would welcome a low-rise seniors' centre and townhouses, but object to high-rises in their neighbourhood.

"In some cases, people moved away from Toronto (to Thornhill Woods) because they wanted the quiet, suburban experience," Kalpin said.

He added that he's angry with the city for not sticking to its zoning plan. Both Jaffari and the Preserve Thornhill Woods Association have had to hire lawyers, city planners and traffic analysts to support their sides.

"Instead of defending the residents of the community, the neighbourhood is paying to defend the city's own laws," he said. "These folks show up with very deep pockets and this crazy, crazy proposal."

Feelings of alienation have been a major cause of tension between the two sides.

He said non-Muslim residents of Thornhill Woods are worried they will be excluded from the Jaffari development. Kalpin compared the proposal to the gated communities in the United States. Some gated communities are based on religion while others are based on income, but either way, Kalpin said the idea isn't appropriate for the GTA.

"It's not the Canadian way," he said. The Preserve Thornhill Woods Association isn't opposed to a religious-oriented area, they just don't want it to be an area where others aren't welcome, Kalpin said.

Many think that they will not be permitted to walk through the neighbourhood anymore if they aren’t Muslim, he said. Could non-Muslim residents walk their dogs in the area, he asked rhetorically. "Could women walk around without head coverings?" However, the developers said that anyone would be welcome, regardless of culture or dress.

Read more: http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/heated-debate-over-thornhill-woods-condo-plan-expected-to-surface-ahead-of-meeting-1.1881682#ixzz35ap9E0ut