The small group that has fought a lengthy legal battle against the Gungahlin mosque says it is weighing up its options after a significant defeat in the ACT Supreme Court last week.
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But Concerned Citizens of Canberra say they have not yet decided whether to pursue their last avenue of appeal to stop the mosque: the High Court.
The 500-capacity Gungahlin mosque was approved by the planning authority in 2012 but its construction was frustrated by a protracted court battle initiated by a group named the Concerned Citizens of Canberra.
The group's leader Irwin Ross is a fundamentalist Christian who the court described as having a "generalised hostility to the Muslim religion".
The court challenge to the mosque relied primarily on planning grounds – parking, noise, public impact, for example – and on the allegedly deficient decision making of the ACT Planning and Land Authority.
A number of Concerned Citizens' members did not live near the mosque site, and Mr Ross sought the urgent recruitment of more people from Gungahlin well after the court proceedings were already on foot.
The group lost the case in the ACT Supreme Court before then Master David Mossop, but appealed to a judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Richard Refshauge.
Justice Refshauge threw out the appeal last week, saying the group had not proved it had standing to challenge ACTPLA's decision, that the appeal had no reasonable prospects of success, and that there was no adequate explanation of why the appeal was lodged late.
That decision leaves the High Court as the last avenue for appeal.
Mr Ross told Fairfax Media that no decisions had yet been made on the next step for his group.
But he said they were weighing up their options and considering the consequences of Justice Refshauge's decision.
"Yay or nay, at this stage, we're not saying anything until we consider the ramifications of this," he said.
The mosque has currently completed its first stage, and the community is fundraising to progress the works.
Canberra Muslim Community president Dr Md Anisul Islam said the community was happy with last week's decision in the ACT Supreme Court, and said further legal action would be "unnecessary".
"We are happy of course that the battle has been won by the government," he said.
"We acknowledge the professionalism shown by the government officials and the judiciary system."
In his decision last week, Justice Refshauge found Concerned Citizens had no more interest in the mosque's approval than that of an "intermeddler or busybody".
The group had roughly five members when it was formed. That was increased to 18 by the time the case was heard in the ACT Supreme Court, and to 23 by the time Master Mossop made his decision.
The case challenged ACTPLA's decision not to extend the public notification period, after a request by Concerned Citizens. It also challenged the decision to approve the development itself.
After the initial decision of Master Mossop last year, Mr Ross controversially used the kidnapping of Nigerian schoolgirls by Boko Haram and the Boston Marathon bombing to explain his opposition to the mosque.
