The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is investigating the East Plano Islamic Center over its upcoming project The Meadow, formally known as EPIC City.
The department in a press release Friday accuses EPIC Real Properties, Inc., and Community Capital Partners, LP — the corporate entities for EPIC— of violating the Fair Housing Act over religious and national origin discrimination.
"It is deeply concerning the East Plano Islamic Center may have violated the Fair Housing Act and participated in religious discrimination,” HUD Secretary Scott Turner said in a statement. “As HUD Secretary, I will not stand for illegal religious or national origin discrimination in housing and will ensure that this matter receives a thorough investigation so that this community is open to all Texans.”
KERA News reached out to EPIC and its developers and will update this story with any response.
The probe stems from a complaint from the Texas Workforce Commission describing a "large-scale pattern of religious discriminatory conduct" by The Meadow's developers, according to the department.
The allegations accuse developers of promoting The Meadow as a Muslim-only community and that it would represent “the epicenter of Islam in America.” Other claims include:
- Discriminatory financial terms that required lot owners to subsidize a mosque and Islamic educational centers.
- A bias sales mechanism consisting of a two-tier lottery system for lot sales, which granted lot access to Tier One buyers.
The Meadow is planned to be a 402-acre development between unincorporated Collin and Hunt counties, roughly 40 miles northeast of Dallas near the city of Josephine.
It would include more than 1,000 homes, a new mosque, a K-12 faith-based school, senior housing, an outreach center, commercial developments, sports facilities, and a community college.
Planners from Community Capital Partners, LLC in the past have repeatedly said The Meadow is an open community where everyone is welcome.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
