Austin council members, community call for rapid safety fixes on North Lamar after imam struck and killed

Community leaders and three Austin City Council members called for immediate pedestrian-safety improvements on North Lamar Boulevard after Imam Islam Musad was struck and killed on the corridor on Sunday, July 27.

Shaima Zayan, operations manager with the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Austin chapter, opened a July press conference saying the group had organized to honor the imam’s life and to press for safety changes near the North Austin Muslim Community Center. “What a life, what a death, and what a legacy,” she said.

Adnan Suleiman, an engineer and volunteer at the North Austin Muslim Community Center, told reporters the mosque has raised safety concerns with city staff repeatedly since 2018 and asked for a pedestrian-activated signal near the center. “This long-standing concern has sadly turned into heartbreak with the tragic loss of Imam Islam Musaad,” Suleiman said, describing missing sidewalks, inadequate crossings and unsafe…