Zoroastrians Build Cultural Centers to Fit Growing U.S. Parsi Population
Zoroastrian organizations across the U.S. are building new cultural centers to accommodate the growing Parsi population in the country.
While the worldwide population of Parsis has declined to fewer than 124,000, the U.S. population is growing, concluded a study published in the Fall 2013 journal of the Federation of Zoroastrian Associations of North America. In India, the Parsi population fell from 69,000 in 2004 to 61,000 in 2012.
But in the U.S., the Parsi population grew from 10,794 in 2004 to 14,405 in 2012, according to the FEZANA journal.
“In India, Parsis are just not getting married and the population is declining,” Tehmi Damania, president of the Zoroastrian Association of California, told India-West. “But in the U.S., people are marrying and having two and three children, so the population is growing,” she said, noting that traditional dictates — which stipulate that a child must be born to a Parsi father to be considered a Parsi — are relaxed a bit in the U.S.
In its early days, ZAC had about 150 members. The organization now boasts over 480 members.
The Zoroastrian population has also grown immensely in Northern California, noted Nazneen Spliedt, president of the Zoroastrian Association of Northern California. “The millennials are multiplying and having children,” she told India-West, noting that ZANC’s membership from 200 families a decade ago has doubled to more than 450 families currently.
ZANC has kicked off a $5 million capital campaign to build a new cultural center which can accommodate the community’s growing population. Its existing facility, situated on 10 acres on a remote hill overlooking the San Francisco Bay Area’s Silicon Valley, is leased from Rustom & Morvarid Guiv Trust, and zoned only for a single family dwelling. Community functions cannot be held at the site, which is accessible only by a small, winding road up the hill.
Erach Tarapore, a key member of ZANC’s capital campaign committee, told India-West the organization had consulted with an attorney to see whether it would be able to get permits to build a larger cultural center on the existing site. The attorney advised ZANC it would first have to spend thousands of dollars to get the property up to code on the slim chance that permits might be approved. “We did not want to gamble away the community’s money,” said Tarapore.
ZANC is looking for an existing 8-10,000 square foot facility on two to three acres that it could remodel into a cultural center to accommodate 350 to 400 people. The organization currently holds its two annual events – Nauroz in spring and Pateti in early fall – at local restaurants. “It is hard to find places that will accommodate 200 or more people,” said Tarapore, noting that the Mar. 19 Navroze dinner party sold out 20 days before the event.
The organization is looking at sites in the East Bay, including Hayward, Fremont, and Milpitas. “It is a good center of gravity for our population,” he said. The new center will have a hall, a sanctuary, 3-4 classrooms, a library, game room, kitchen, storage areas and parking for 200 cars.
ZAC in Southern California acquired a church in 2010 for $2.6 million, and has spent five years remodeling the existing structure to suit its needs. It first took out the pews to build an auditorium with a stage, and then remodeled the kitchen. “Parsis won’t come if there’s no food,” Damania laughingly told India-West.
Last October, it broke ground for an Atash Kadeh – a prayer room – on a portion of the site.
The Zoroastrian Association of Greater New York, the Iranian Zoroastrian Association, and the Dar-e-Mehr Zoroastrian Temple will inaugurate its new cultural center in Pomona, New York, on Mar. 26. The new center is a refurbished synagogue on four acres, which was purchased in 2000 for $1.2 million. The new religious and community center reflects traditional Zoroastrian architecture, and can accommodate the more than 1,000 Zoroastrians who live in the greater New York area.
Published on India West
