Texas Attorney Ken Paxton announced on Thursday, March 26, 2026, that a controversial plan to build a massive "sustainable city" in Kaufman County has been officially abandoned following a state-led investigation. The project, backed by the Dubai-based developer SEE Holding, aimed to house up to 20,000 foreign nationals on thousands of acres of rural land.
Paxton, who launched his probe in early February after local residents raised alarms, characterized the move as a victory for national security and the rule of law.
"There will be no 'sharia city' in Texas under my watch," Paxton stated, reiterating his concern that the development was designed as an autonomous enclave intended to bypass Texas and U.S. legal jurisdictions.
The project first drew scrutiny on February 9, 2026, when Paxton issued formal "Requests to Examine" to the developers and their U.S. subsidiaries.
Local opposition centered on fears that the "sustainable city" would create a parallel society with its own religious and legal governance, while also placing an unsustainable strain on local resources like water and emergency services.
Congressman Lance Gooden confirmed the developers' withdrawal late Thursday, noting that the pressure of state oversight and community pushback made the project unviable.
Paxton’s office framed the investigation as a proactive defense against "potentially unlawful" developments that threaten to import foreign legal systems into the state.
Public reaction has been amplified by social media accounts like Libs of TikTok, which celebrated the announcement as a win against "anti-American" cultural shifts and foreign-backed "no-go zones."
The account’s post, which featured a screenshot of the official press release, quickly went viral among supporters who view Paxton as a key bulwark against progressive urban planning and mass immigration.
Critics of the Attorney General, however, argue that the "Sharia City" narrative was a politically motivated exaggeration designed to target Muslim-oriented housing projects, pointing to similar recent fights Paxton has led against the former EPIC City development near Plano.
Despite the developers’ initial claims that the city would be a model for eco-friendly living, the state's aggressive legal posture focused on the transparency of foreign funding and the intent behind the enclave’s governance.
With the plans now scrapped, local officials in Kaufman County are turning their attention back to traditional residential growth.
For Paxton, the outcome serves as a significant "victory lap" in his ongoing campaign to police the boundaries of Texas sovereignty and cultural identity.
The Attorney General’s office has signaled that it will continue to monitor large-scale, foreign-backed land acquisitions for any signs of similar autonomous planning.