A Dallas district court judge granted a temporary injunction pausing the construction of an industrial warehouse near South Dallas megachurch Friendship-West Baptist Church Tuesday.
The injunction comes months after the church filed a lawsuit against developers Stonelake Capital Partners and SL6 Wheatland LP. The original petition was denied, and the church is appealing the decision.
Residents of the predominantly Black and Latino community vocally opposed the 200,000-square-foot warehouse, which is planned to be between the church, a county government center and a residential neighborhood.
The original petition asked the city of Dallas to deny the project.
Court documents filed by the megachurch say the warehouse would have a negative environmental impact on the community and "further historical hardship and developmental discrimination in the community."
The case is set for trial April 14, 2025.
The area of the proposed site was zoned residential until the early 2000s when it was rezoned to a planned development, KERA News previously reported.
Residents say the warehouse could bring more traffic and add to the potential for more roadway accidents.
Neighborhood kids also walk to school — Carter High School is located just down the block from the proposed warehouse — and residents worry about their safety getting to and from school or the bus stop, KERA News previously reported.
The developers' attorneys claimed the city stonewalled and conspired against them during the permitting process, but the city previously said its decisions were based on safety, KERA News previously reported.
Neither Friendship-West Baptist Church nor the developer's attorneys immediately responded to requests for comment.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
KERA News reporters Toluwani Osibamowo and Nathan Collins contributed to this report.
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