According to records obtained by KERA News, the Texas Workforce Commission agreed on Tuesday to resolve all fair housing claims against a proposed multifunctional development near a North Texas mosque.
Community Capital Partners, the corporation behind the East Plano Islamic Center’s planned EPIC City in unincorporated Collin and Hunt counties, reached a Conciliation Agreement with TWC, dismissing claims that EPIC City will discriminate against non-Muslims in violation of the Texas Fair Housing Act.
According to the agreement, CCP leadership will attend fair housing training, review marketing and sales materials to ensure they are not discriminatory, implement fair housing policies, use “objective, uniform, and directly related to business” criteria to vet applicants, and submit reports and documents to TWC over the next five years.
CCP President Imran Chaudhary stated in an emailed statement that the organization was glad TWC has completed its study of EPIC City.
“We welcomed the opportunity to take a deep dive into the Fair Housing Act, and we have identified ways to make our master-planned community stronger and more diverse,” according to Chaudhary. “Truly, it would be beneficial for everyone building a mixed-use project in Texas to have this review and guidance from TWC.”
KERA News has reached out to the Texas Workforce Commission and Gov. Greg Abbott’s office for comment, and we will update this story with any responses.
EPIC City is a projected neighborhood of over 400 acres near Josephine, approximately 40 miles northeast of Dallas. It would have a new mosque, over 1,000 residences, a K-12 faith-based school, and other amenities.
Abbott and other state officials were outraged by the development early this year, after knowledge of EPIC City spread over social media. Abbott announced the EPIC inquiry in March, following a flurry of other state inquiries into the city for suspected violations of consumer protection laws, burial service rules, and financial harm.
In June, the US Department of Justice ended a similar inquiry into suspected religious discrimination at EPIC City. The Texas Rangers are also looking into EPIC for possible criminal behavior, but Abbott has not indicated what that would be.
Abbott approved legislation that went into effect in June targeting EPIC City’s economic and legal structure, referring to it as a “Sharia compound” that enforces religious segregation.
CCP has stated that the law has no effect on its corporate structure and that it supports the legislation. EPIC claims that EPIC City will not exclude non-Muslims.
