San Antonio Jamatkhana: North Side gets its first Muslim worship center

San Antonio Express-News – By Abe Levy March 16, 2014: SAN ANTONIO — The first Muslim worship center to locate in the affluent far North Side is nearing completion and will be a place for prayer, education and community events for a growing branch of Shiite Islam.

The new campus, projected to open in eight to 10 weeks, is the first Muslim facility to open north of Loop 1604, an area well-populated by large Christian congregations.

The new facility marks a milestone for Ismaili Muslims who have grown from 40 members three decades ago to an estimated 2,000 in the San Antonio area today. Mindful of controversial debates about U.S. Muslims after 9-11, its leaders said they chose this location — a visible stretch of Evans Road near Bulverde Road — to cater to members living in nearby neighborhoods.

“We have always been for peace and tolerance and pluralism,” said Waheeda Kara, a local spokeswoman. “You’ll never find us talking about raising more ignorance among individuals. We believe in the need to be a more pluralistic society. We want to be more accepted by all faiths. We are all under one humanity. I think now more than ever it’s important to see.”

Ismailis value civic engagement, their leaders said, citing their charity walks for the poor and undereducated as an example. While prayer and Muslim rituals will take place inside, Ismailis do not call the building a mosque. Instead, it is the “Ismaili Jamatkhana,” or “place of gathering.”

There are 80 “Jamatkhanas” in the United States, including 16 in Texas, the group said. Like for the other properties, it plans a grand opening.

Construction began last July on the estimated $3 million project, which includes an overhaul of an existing 8,000-square-foot structure for social events and classrooms that will be connected to a new 11,000-square-foot prayer hall.

Able to hold up to 1,000 people, the facility fronts Encino Ranch and is across the street from the Terraces of Encino Park. Some nearby homeowners wish the group had done more to publicize the project, said Sharon Laird, a homeowner near the site.

“The community doesn’t know what it is,” Laird said. “They think honestly that it’s just another church, and that it’s going to be big. It makes us question why are they putting it in so quietly.”

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