Former Catholic School Could Become Muslim-Only Boarding School

A New York town is facing backlash from residents over a proposal to place an Islamic all-boys school in a Long Island residential neighborhood. 

Residents of the hamlet of Bay Shore raised concerns over a plan from the United American Muslim Association to convert a former Catholic school building into an Islamic boarding school for boys. Members of the neighborhood group “Saxon Says No” showed up in force to a zoning meeting Tuesday to voice their opposition to the school. 

The group says that the Town of Islip, which oversees the hamlet, would be bypassing zoning regulations if it approves the project without input from locals. 

“This appeal is about zoning, due process, and protecting a residential neighborhood. We respect every person’s constitutional right to worship,” the opposition group said. “This appeal is not about religion — it is about whether the Town of Islip is properly applying its own zoning laws.”

Many residents believe that the proposed 120-student boarding school would bring increased traffic to the area as well as lead to groups of roving teenage boys running throughout the neighborhood. 

“The proposed use by the new property owner is far more intensive than what is appropriate for a quiet residential neighborhood,” Saxon Says No leader Kevin Colgan said during a meeting on the project, according to The New York Post. 

“This is about protecting the integrity of our zoning laws — not opposing any individual or organization — zoning laws exist to preserve the character, integrity, and quality of life within our neighborhoods while ensuring that land uses are appropriate for their surroundings,” Colgan added.

The building being proposed for the school was sold to the United American Muslim Association for $5 million by the Roman Catholic Montfort Missionaries. It used to be a Catholic school, but has not been used for that purpose in decades. 

The New Jersey-based United American Muslim Association describes itself as an organization seeking to “provide permanent solutions” for Muslims in North America “primarily by providing appropriate places to worship and providing an Islamic education for the youth.”

One local, Anna Chan, said her family purchased a home in the neighborhood with the belief that it would remain a residential area. 

“When my family chose to purchase this home 10 years ago — we relied on the zoning protections when making one of the largest investments of our lives — a community of single-family homes where the zoning was intended to preserve its residential character,” she said. 

Bay Shore resident Elizabeth Byrne argued that the school would completely reshape the neighborhood’s family-focused feel. 

“I just feel like it’s going to totally compromise the environment and the history that has been here for years,” she said. “I think it’s going to destroy it.”