After hours of emotional public comment, a New York City community board voted overwhelmingly to support a plan to build a mosque and cultural center near Ground Zero.

"It's a seed of peace," board member Rob Townley said. "We believe that this is significant step in the Muslim community to counteract the hate and fanaticism in the minority of the community."

The vote late Tuesday by the Manhattan Community Board was 29-1 in favor of the plan, with 10 abstentions, the Associated Press reports.

Some in the crowd held pictures of victims of the attack, others carried signs reading, "Show respect for 9/11. No mosque!"

The board did not have the power to block the project, but its actions are an important barometer of community sentiment, The New York Times says.

Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, director of one sponsor of the project, said he understood the anguish but noted that his group condemned the 9/11 attacks, which killed members of his community and congregation as well.

"We have worked to ensure that our mosques are not recruiting grounds for terrorists," he said.

C. Lee Hanson, whose son, Peter, died in the Trade Center, said he opposed the project, not because he was intolerant but because it would be insensitive to build a tribute to Islam so close to Ground Zero.

"When I look over there and I see a mosque, it's going to hurt," Hanson said, according to The Times. "Build it someplace else."

(Posted by Doug Stanglin)