TEXAS — As he prepares for a May runoff election, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is continuing efforts to block a proposed Muslim-centered community in North Texas, urging local officials not to approve development permits tied to the project formerly known as “EPIC City.”
Paxton recently sent a letter to Collin County officials asking them to reject any applications connected to the development, which has drawn scrutiny and political attention for more than two years.
The project, led by the East Plano Islamic Center, aims to build a 400-acre community near Josephine that would include homes, schools and a mosque.
Plans for the development first emerged in February 2024, when EPIC announced the project in a series of YouTube videos that were later deleted. By October, a conservative social media account amplified the videos, spreading anti-Islam rhetoric and drawing wider attention.
Soon after, in February 2025, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott posted on the social platform X, stating, “Sharia Law is not allowed in Texas.”
That post helped spark a wave of state investigations launched in March, including a civil investigation led by Paxton’s office.
Public concern intensified during a March 31 Collin County Commissioners Court meeting, where residents voiced opposition to the development.
“Are they going to stay in their own little community and they’re not going to leave out of their community?” one resident said.
“They would not want this in our state, in our republic,” another added.
By late April 2025, EPIC officials began speaking out, saying they had received threats and were facing growing hostility. Their attorney, Dan Cogdell — who also represented Paxton during his impeachment trial — pushed back on allegations surrounding the project.
“The idea that we’re going to invoke Sharia Law or any of that nonsense is total bullshit,” Cogdell said.
Additional state investigations followed in May 2025, though no substantive findings were publicly announced. Despite the scrutiny, no permit applications had been submitted and construction had not begun.
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, also called for federal involvement, prompting the U.S. Department of Justice to review the situation.
Advocacy groups have defended the development. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said the project is being unfairly targeted.
“In every religious community I know has housing development. What makes ours different? The difference is the propaganda that you hear,” said Mustafaa Carroll, executive director of CAIR-Texas.
In November 2025, Abbott designated CAIR as a foreign terrorist and transnational criminal organization, further escalating tensions around the issue.
In January 2026, EPIC’s affiliate, Capital Community Partners, rebranded the development as “The Meadow.”
The following month, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development opened a review into potential Fair Housing Act violations related to the project. Paxton also sued a municipal utility district in Hunt and Collin counties tied to the development.
Most recently, in March, Paxton urged Collin County commissioners to deny any future development applications connected to the project.
County officials declined to comment, citing ongoing litigation.