By Ilan Hulkower, Contributor Daily Caller News Foundation | April 04, 2025
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Tuesday that the East Plano Islamic Center (EPIC) could not begin construction on a proposed Muslim neighborhood due to legal issues, according to a press release.
EPIC has proposed building a Muslim ‘city’ on 402 acres of land in Texas the organization labeled “EPIC City,” according to Newsweek. The proposal includes building over 1,000 homes, a school based on the Islamic religion, a college, a mosque and retail operations. Texas authorities began an investigation in response to the project.
EPIC failed to obtain proper authorization and the permits needed for their construction project, the press release from Abbott’s office said. The commission also sent a letter to EPIC and its affiliates demanding that they confirm no construction activities have occurred.
“The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality found that the group behind the proposed EPIC compound did not submit the required permits to begin construction,” the governor said. “They must confirm within seven days that they are immediately ceasing any construction of their illegal project or face the full weight of the law. The State of Texas will enforce its laws and protect our communities from unlawful actions or threats posed by EPIC or its affiliates.”
This move followed allegations against EPIC’s intentions for the project. In response to a now-deleted post allegedly suggesting the proposal could lead to Sharia law, Abbott expressed concern back in February.
“To be clear, Sharia law is not allowed in Texas. Nor are Sharia cities. Nor are ‘no go zones’ which this project seems to imply,” he wrote. Sharia law is Islamic law derived from the Quran, the religion’s holy book, along with other texts.
EPIC’s affiliate, Community Capital Partners, said the community will allow everyone to live harmoniously together, Newsweek reported.
“To me, as someone who is a sixth generation Texan, it reads that I’m not welcome here,” William White, director of the Houston branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said, the Houston Chronicle reported.
“EPIC City is going to be a role model community of thousands of Muslims living well-integrated … We’re going to be giving back to this state and this country, and we’re going to be showing what it means to be a Muslim neighborhood,” EPIC resident scholar Yasir Qadhi said, according to Newsweek.
“EPIC City is a thoughtful community designed for families, just like hundreds of others in Texas. The only reason it is being unfairly targeted, is because there is a mosque in the plans instead of a church or a temple. That’s it,” Dan Cogdell, the lawyer hired to represent the developer’s plan, said, the Houston Chronicle reported.
Abbott reiterated his concerns about allegations that the project was tied to Sharia law online Tuesday. “And Sharia law is outlawed in Texas under a law I signed in 2017. Texas is investigating EPIC City for many allegations, including attempts to circumvent that law. All entities in Texas must follow state law, not Sharia law,” the governor wrote in response to a post by Riley Gaines, a defender of women’s sports.
The governor’s office noted that multiple agencies are continuing to probe the project for potential criminal violations.
Ilan Hulkower is a contributor at the Daily Caller News Foundation
Original article link
