AUSTIN (KXAN) — An Austin religious leader killed by an allegedly intoxicated driver Sunday night will be laid to rest Friday.
Imam Anwer Imam remembers all the good memories he has of his friend Imam Islam Mossaad, now he’s helping plan the funeral.
“He was a community leader he was a teacher, he was a mentor,” said Imam. “For a lot of the young people here in Austin he was their first Islamic studies teacher, for a lot of the adults he was the person they would go to for issues of Islamic questions, marriage, divorce, advice.”
Imam said Mossaad was loved by all, not only the Muslim community.
CAIR Austin’s release calls Mossaad “a pillar of faith and service in Austin.” He served as an imam from 2008-2023.
Mossaad, 50, was walking along North Lamar Boulevard when he was hit by a car Sunday evening. Imam said Mossaad would frequently pray and then go for walks along North Lamar.
The area is busy with traffic, and the people KXAN spoke to said it is “unsafe” for pedestrians.
“This is not the first time he has walked that stretch of Lamar, and the first couple of times we heard he was doing that this concern was brought up,” said Imam. “This tragic incident highlights that concern even more.”
Most of the areas KXAN spotted have make shift paths through the dirt or grass, and some of the areas near bridges call for walking through high grass or the road.
Megan and her kids walk down one of the make shift paths every morning and afternoon for school.
“With young kids its not safe,” Megan said.
“It just seems like the cars are going very fast in this area,” Megan said. “I believe we need crosswalks and sidewalks definitely.”
KXAN previously reported on pedestrian safety issues along the section of North Lamar Boulevard where Mossaad was killed. NAMCC is also along that stretch.
Since then, sidewalks in front of NAMCC have been improved. The sidewalks also do not run the full length of North Lamar Boulevard. Additionally, there are no crosswalks to allow pedestrians to safely cross the four-lane road.
Mossaad was struck while crossing at a crosswalk to NAMCC’s north, located a mile away. There is a crosswalk south of the mosque that is half a mile away, according to the Austin Police Department.
Will more improvements be coming to the dangerous stretch of road?
The city told KXAN Capital Delivery Services is partnering with the Transportation and Public Works Department on road improvements along North Lamar through the Corridor Program.
KXAN checked the city’s sidewalk program projects map, which shows North Lamar highlighted from near Rundberg Lane to West Parmer Lane. The green highlighted roads symbolize projects that are active or set to start in the next 30 days according to the map legend.
You can find out more about sidewalk projects using this map.