In Cologne, the minarets generated just as much controversy as the mosque itself. The local Muslim community and the architect responded by lowering the two proposed minarets to allay fears that they would compete with the spires of Cologne Cathedral. In fact, a pamphlet published by the Turkish organization behind the mosque provides a scale drawing of the mosque and its minarets, placing them alongside other prominent buildings in Cologne. The minarets reach a height of 55 meters, much shorter than the almost 160-meter height of the cathedral's spires, and nowhere near the height of Cologne's tallest structure, the Colonius, which measures almost 270 meters. But such a campaign to allay fears over the minarets' height reveals just how much anxiety accompanies the prominent presence of an Islamic structure. We see examples of this anxiety in other locations, such as Pforzheim, Germany, where a minaret was allowed only if it were lower than the steeple of a local church.

Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Intro…, loc. 632