Rumors about relocating Park51 mosque to St. Vincent’s are false, sources say

King Abdullah and Park51 rendering

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia was rumored to be looking into buying St. Vincent’s Medical Center, with plans to relocate the controversial Park51 mosque from its proposed Ground Zero location to the West Village, Manhattan lawyer Dudley Gaffin told the Post. “[Abdullah] wants to do this as a PR move — to save the hospital and move the mosque away from the World Trade Center site,” a source told the Post. “He wants to show that Muslims can do good works.” Abudallah would also save the hospital, reopening most of the units that closed when St. Vincent’s filed for bankruptcy in April, according to the Post. However, backers of Park51, such as Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, said nobody had contacted them about moving the Islamic cultural center to St. Vincent’s, the Daily News reported. According to a source close to Park51 developer Sharif el-Gamal, the mosque isn’t moving from its proposed Park Place site. A high-ranking health care official involved in the sale of St. Vincent’s also told the Daily News that nobody had heard a word about the Saudi king’s plan. [Post] and [NYDN]