City council stops mosque construction in Dresden – New plans for leisure areas!

City council stops mosque construction in Dresden – New plans for leisure areas!

The Dresden City Council recently made a decision that will have far-reaching effects on religious and social life in the city. On June 19, 2025, a change ban was decided for the area around Marschnerstrasse and Straßburger Platz. This measure goes against the plans of the Marwa-El-Sherbini Center, which wanted to build a new mosque there. The decision was made without discussion and with a large majority and helps ensure that some structural changes are ruled out in the next two years.

The change block covers the entire area where the center plans to build a new mosque that will accommodate 400 devout Muslims. The community is currently using a temporary building that urgently needs to be replaced with a new building. However, the closure also affects the property at Marschnerstrasse 2, where the cultural and educational center is located. This means that the Marwa-El-Sherbini Center has a challenge to overcome: the Stuttgart architectural firm's previous designs for the mosque construction cannot be implemented for the time being. It remains unclear whether the mosque can be built at this point or at another location at some point, as t-online.de reports.

New concept for the area

Instead of a new mosque, the city now wants to create space for modern leisure and educational offerings. A traffic garden and a cycling practice area for children are planned near Straßburger Platz. This was decided by a majority in the city council's building committee and is now awaiting final approval from the entire city council. This project is also supported by the idea of ​​integrating additional play and leisure areas as well as a multifunctional hall with a practice field. The creation of bicycle parking spaces and training rooms is also under discussion, as MDR further explains.

The city councilors' decision was met with mixed reactions in the city. Many citizens and members of the Muslim community react with incomprehension to the closure and the associated delay in mosque plans. At a time when visibility and integration of Muslim communities are becoming increasingly important, the construction of mosques often leads to tensions in society. A visible presence and the desire for more integration-friendly construction projects counteract reservations that arise from fear of supposed Islamization. According to goethe.de, it is not uncommon for such conflicts to arise between Muslim and non-Muslim citizens.

Architectural challenges

There are a total of around 2,800 mosques in Germany, of which only 350 are externally recognizable as such. Many of these places of worship are hidden in backyards or commercial areas and are very different from the impressive mosques in Islamic countries. Architectural elements such as minarets and domes are often missing because these elements can face resistance from the neighborhood. There are now efforts to develop a kind of Euro-Islam architecture that combines Islamic and European values. Examples of this include the Central Mosque in Cologne, which has space for 1,200 visitors and is a modern interpretation of Islamic architecture, and the mosque in Penzberg with its innovative stainless steel minaret.

The developments around Marschnerstrasse and Straßburger Platz are a reflection of current social debates and challenges. It remains to be seen whether and when the Marwa-El-Sherbini Center can finally begin construction work. One thing is certain: the city council's decision has reshuffled the cards and will have a lasting impact on the discussion about the visibility of the Muslim community in Dresden.