The developers behind a proposed Muslim-centric community in Lino Lakes — as well as the current owner of the land — pushed back on city plans to put the project on hold.
Following a public outcry over the Madinah Lakes development, which includes more than 400 homes, businesses and a mosque, the Lino Lakes City Council voted in late June to move forward with a one-year moratorium. A second and final reading on the moratorium is set for July 8. If passed, it will go into effect in August.
At a news conference Tuesday, Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN), said the City Council’s move to table discussion on Madinah Lakes at a work session Monday signaled their “rejection” of it moving forward.
“What we heard yesterday is that a moratorium is already in effect, irregardless of the decision that’s being made in July, [and] that the City Council will not allow this project to go forward in its normal process,” Hussein said.
The 156-acre Madinah Lakes project is the latest proposal for a former sod farm in Lino Lakes. After developers from Zikar Holdings posted a video of the project in March, residents flooded City Hall with questions and packed a City Council meeting to oppose the project.
Zikar Holdings President Faraaz Yussuf said Tuesday that his company has invested “a few hundreds of thousands” of dollars into developing Madinah Lakes. He said interested buyers have already paid to reserve homes, money that Zikar has put in an escrow account.
A building contractor hasn’t been chosen yet to build the residential homes, Yussuf told the Sahan Journal. He also said he has a final purchase agreement with the landowner and his company is the only developer that has a current application in process for the land.
The owners of the former Robinson Sod Farm have made several attempts to sell the land in the last two decades. None of the previous developers have faced a moratorium or a requirement for the city to first create a master plan, said Brian Robinson, a spokesman for the family that owns the land.
“There’s one developer, one application,” Robinson said, referring to Zikar Holdings at Tuesday’s news conference.
Yussuf and others at the news conference said the pushback to the project is Islamophobic.
“Our community has heard hateful things online unfortunately of, ‘Why Muslims are coming — 10,000 people are going to live there,’ and those voices of hatred won yesterday,” Hussein said at Tuesday’s news conference.
Zikar will decide its next steps, which could include a lawsuit, after the July 8 meeting, he said.
Lino Lake residents who have testified against Madinah Lakes say they’re worried the increased density of the project would overwhelm the water supply, increase traffic, and harm the environment. Some argue that the developer is “inexperienced” and the project needs more studies before further approval.
Another developer, Integrate Properties, went through an extensive city planning process on the same land before withdrawing its development proposal in late 2023. That project was not aimed at Muslim buyers. A city planning document at that time showed dozens of questions from residents about density, traffic, environmental impacts and overcrowding at local schools.
In recommending the one-year moratorium, the Lino Lakes Planning and Zoning Board said it would give the city time to create a master plan for developing the large property. The master plan would address multiple factors, including environmental resources, parks and open space, and transportation needs. The plan will examine 900 acres in the northwest area, including the project’s proposed site.
“I think everything that we’ve done until now has shown that we are willing to work with the city the best that we can,” Yussuf said. “I will hope that we can continue to find the path forward, and we do plan to continue to develop this property.”
