Brookfield - The Brookfield Plan Commission on Monday unanimously recommended approval of the city's first mosque, eliciting a burst of applause from members and supporters of the Muslim community.

"We're very happy and touched by the broad-based support for this project," Brookfield physician Mushir Hassan, who has spearheaded the development plans, said after the vote.

"I'm proud to be a Brookfield resident," longtime resident Rafat Arain told commission members before leaving the Common Council chambers.

Alderman and Plan Commission member Gary Mahkorn called it "a proud moment for the city of Brookfield."

The issue now moves to the Brookfield Common Council, which takes up the request for a conditional use permit at its May 15 meeting.

Monday's public hearing drew an overflow crowd that spilled into a hallway and nearby conference room, many of them Brookfield Muslims who would worship at the mosque.

The overwhelming majority of those who spoke voiced support for the project, dwarfing the handful of questions and criticisms that focused on traffic, parking and environmental issues.

The Muslim residents, many of them doctors and other health care providers, spoke of their fondness for Brookfield and their desire to have a place of worship in the suburb.

"We moved here for the same reasons everybody else did - for great neighborhoods and great schools," said Bushra Zaibak, a mother of three who moved with her family from Chicago six years ago.

Several others who are not Muslim also spoke in favor of the project.

"I'm not a Muslim, but some of my best friends are," said Geramin LaBrie of Brookfield, who spoke in favor of the mosque. "Any faith, any building, that is a complement to love and brotherhood needs to be respected."

The tenor of Monday's hearing was far different from earlier gatherings in which Islamic leaders fielded questions from often-hostile skeptics.

Some of those critics attended the meeting but did not speak. Of those who did, only one said flatly that she opposed the project, and another called for a moratorium to better study traffic.

"I'm a big fan of the Bill of Rights and freedom of religion. But I am not a big fan of any facility that brings additional traffic," said Kathleen Grasse of Brookfield.

After more than a decade of planning and searching for a site, the Islamic Society hopes to break ground this summer on a 13,000-square-foot mosque and community center on Pheasant Drive, east of N. Calhoun Road.

A number of individuals and religious groups have voiced their support, including the Brookfield-Elm Grove Interfaith Network and the Interfaith Conference of Greater Milwaukee.

But critics have raised concerns about issues ranging from traffic to Islamic beliefs and fears of radicalism.

Islamic leaders repeatedly have tried to address those concerns, including at a public forum late last month when they fielded questions about sharia law, jihad, the Qur'an and more.

Mayor Steve Ponto put the crowd on notice Monday that the Plan Commission would consider only those comments and questions related to land use and traffic.

"The issue tonight is a building, not a religion or anything else," Ponto said.

"If you want to talk about religion, or if you want to talk about the Brewers, go outside City Hall and talk about that," he said.

City planning staff on Monday recommended the commission approve the project, saying it meets city zoning and land use requirements.

The Islamic Society reduced the size of the building to address concerns about increased traffic on N. Calhoun Road, staff said.

It also agreed to install a right turn lane to ease traffic, and not to seek an expansion of the project until N. Calhoun Road is widened.

The debate in Brookfield has mirrored those surrounding mosque projects around the country, including a 2010 proposal to open a mosque in a former health food store in Sheboygan County.