(Texas Scorecard) – With three newly elected members in place, Blue Ridge City Council voted to undo its annexation of two Muslim-owned properties slated for development, addressing months of citizen complaints about the proposed Islamic communities.
The developments, known as Baladeyah and Qariyah of Princeton, have been in the works for five years but dominated the city’s last two council meetings as final approvals became imminent.
In March, residents of Blue Ridge and surrounding areas asked council members to delay a scheduled vote to approve development agreements for the projects.
Residents raised concerns about the strain on city infrastructure and services, whether the developments could become religiously “segregated” communities, and the impact of a large Muslim population on city voting. They also noted technical issues involving the city’s annexation agreements with the property owners.
Council members agreed to the delay.
At the April meeting, a standing-room-only crowd spoke against the developments and pressed council members to postpone a decision until after the May election.
Tuesday night’s disannexation vote came after the three new council members were sworn into office.
Trenton Sissom, Linda Braly, and Wendy Mattingly were elected to the six-member council on May 3 after campaigning to stop the controversial developments within the city.
At Mattingly’s suggestion, the disannexation ordinances were amended to keep the properties within the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ), an unincorporated area surrounding the city in which Blue Ridge can retain some control over the properties’ future development.
During public comments, Herbert Gears spoke on behalf of the developers. Gears is a former mayor of Irving, which has a large Muslim population, who now heads a consulting and real estate development firm.
“I was asked to help my neighbor who’s involved in this project, Mr. Ansari,” said Gears, referring to the president of Irving-based Hamra Homes, a custom home builder affiliated with the developments.
Gears said the property owners were asked by the city to be annexed, but they were not notified about Tuesday’s proposed disannexation.
“We do not have an issue with being disannexed. It wasn’t our idea to begin with,” he said. “We’re kind of wondering why nobody told us this was on the agenda.”
Gears told Texas Scorecard that city officials persuaded the developers they would have an easier time working with the city if annexed. He wasn’t sure what the developers’ next steps will be to move forward with the projects.
Several residents spoke in favor of the disannexation and keeping the land in the city’s ETJ.
“Everybody here in Blue Ridge, once we found out what was going on, opposed it. And there’s multiple, multiple reasons,” said local church trustee Roger Little. “It’s the one thing that brought this community together.”
Laura Giles, who owns land near Blue Ridge, agreed with Little.
“One of the great things that has happened through all of this is now citizens are engaged. They’re showing up and speaking at meetings. They’re voting!” Giles told Texas Scorecard. “I’m looking forward to Blue Ridge City Council working with residents to develop a new long-range comprehensive plan that will best protect the interests of citizens for the years to come.”