The State of Texas is advising the Collin County Commissioners Court to continue denying land applications tied to the East Plano Islamic Center’s planned EPIC City development, a project that remains the subject of multiple legal challenges.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sent a letter Tuesday urging county officials to maintain their refusal to approve a plat application connected to the development, also known as “The Meadow.” The large-scale residential project has faced scrutiny from state officials over concerns that it could operate as a religiously centered community.
In the letter, Paxton referenced ongoing litigation brought by the state, including a lawsuit filed in February against Double R Municipal Utility District No. 2A of Hunt and Collin Counties. The suit alleges the district facilitated what Paxton described as the “illegal annexation of land intended to facilitate the development” of EPIC City.
Paxton wrote that the municipal utility district had been engaging in actions that “appear designed to evade state oversight and support the illegal [EPIC] real estate development.”
His letter also acknowledged that Collin County officials had already declined to approve the development’s plat application due to unresolved issues.
“I am advised that to date you have refused to approve EPIC City’s requested plat application due to its multiple deficiencies and the insufficiency of information provided,” Paxton wrote.
“I write today to advise you that issues relating to some of these deficiencies are the subject of active litigation brought by the State of Texas,” he added.
In the February lawsuit, Paxton alleged that Double R MUD held a “highly unusual special meeting” in September in which the existing board members resigned and were replaced with a new board. According to the complaint, the new board approved an expansion of the district’s boundaries by 402 acres to include the proposed site of “The Meadow.”
The attorney general claimed the move constituted an “illegal annexation” intended to avoid state oversight by expanding an existing municipal utility district rather than creating a new one through standard procedures.
Federal authorities have also examined the development. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity opened an investigation into whether EPIC City violated the Fair Housing Act by engaging in religious or national origin discrimination.
The probe was launched shortly after the U.S. Department of Justice concluded its own investigation into the project and found it to be in compliance with the federal housing law.
Paxton’s lawsuit also alleges that promotional materials for the development suggested it would be reserved for Muslims and described the community as the “epicenter of Islam in North America.”
The dispute comes amid broader political debates in Texas over Islamic law. Republican leaders, including Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Gov. Greg Abbott, have recently emphasized measures aimed at preventing the application of Sharia law within the state.
In November 2025, Abbott called on Collin and Dallas counties to investigate entities that might be enforcing Sharia law, specifically highlighting the Islamic Tribunal in Dallas. Meanwhile, a Republican primary ballot proposition asking whether Texas should “prohibit Sharia Law” passed with 95 percent of the vote among participating voters.
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