A planned mosque and Muslim cultural center near the site of the 9/11 attacks recently received support as a Lower Manhattan community board and the Landmark Preservation Commission approved the proposal to build the structure on the site of a 153-year-old building just two blocks from the World Trade Center.

The proposal has drawn criticism from New Yorkers, including many family members of 9/11 victims, who feel a mosque so close to ground zero is an insult to the thousands who died. Despite support from Mayor Michael Bloomberg and many city council members, the plan still required approval from New York’s Landmark Preservation Commission, since the existing building, which has been considered for landmark status for more than 20 years, would have to be demolished.