Is Keller Islamic Center building a refugee shelter near 2 schools? Here are the facts
Claims that an Islamic center is building a refugee shelter near two Keller schools are unsubstantiated, according to the city of Fort Worth’s Development Services department.
The claims were brought up at last week’s Keller school board meeting by two speakers who said they feared for students’ safety if a refugee shelter were built there.
Located at 3601 Keller Hicks Road, the Keller Islamic Center is across the street from Trinity Springs Middle School and a couple blocks from Independence Elementary School, both in the Keller school district.
Marissa Bryce and Katherine Peyton brought the issue before the board. Bryce called a refugee shelter in the area a “very large security risk” and told board members that she had brought the matter to the attention of Fort Worth City council member Alan Blaylock.
A representative from Blaylock’s office told the Star-Telegram that the allegation is a rumor and that there is no evidence the Islamic center is building a shelter on its property.
Mellissa Bruckner, who spoke to the Star-Telegram before the start of Thursday’s school board meeting, said she became suspicious about the building activities on the property after seeing construction crews for three weeks in February.
She approached a Spanish-speaking worker with her concerns.
“He spoke enough English, but when I said, ‘Oh, you mean shelter like buildings for people to sleep in?’ he goes, ‘Sí,” she said in an interview.
“If this property is going to have all of these refugees — and I don’t care where they’re coming from, Mexico, Thailand, North Korea wherever — we all know that many of them come here after being released from institutions, prisons, or they will have no money, nowhere to eat, they will rob steal and whatever,” she said.
Bruckner said she also contacted Blaylock’s office and conveyed her concerns to Peyton, who posted them to social media. Bruckner did not speak during public comment at Thursday’s meeting.
LaShonda Stringfellow, assistant director of zoning and design review for Fort Worth Development Services, told the Star-Telegram in an email that as of Friday there were no active permits on the property.
Representatives from the Fort Worth Code Compliance office visited the center, Stringfellow said, and were told by a board member for the center that “there are no plans for a refugee center/camp or housing on site.”
Blaylock shared the statement from Development Services on social media Friday, saying that it “should address those concerns as well as the public process that would be required if the rumor were actually true.”
There are two expired permits on the property, one to build prayer sheds outside the main building and one for occupancy change of use to convert the residential structure on the property to a church.
Code compliance will address the issue of the expired permits, Stringfellow said.
Islamic center board member Khandker Rob told the Star-Telegram that he was shocked to receive phone calls from the school district about the alleged shelter.
The center erected canopies for overflow during prayer services, as the congregation has outgrown its building, he said. They have also been doing work on the parking lot and drainage system on the property.
“I do not know why some people are having issues,” he said in a phone interview. “We want to make sure that there is no misunderstanding, that no person can start a wild rumor.”
The Islamic center’s Vice President Shafiq Islam gave the Star-Telegram a tour of the facilities on Monday. The parking lot had been covered with gravel in recent weeks, as the previous dirt lot became muddy on rainy days.
The prayer canopy has no sidings to protect from the elements for overnight stays. The prayer center, a former residence, has been completely outfitted for religious services. It does not even have a working kitchen, as it is also used for prayer services.
Islam encouraged members of the community to visit the center to get to know them better.
“Anyone can come in and observe what we do,” he said.
The nondenominational church, which has been at the location since 2014, usually sees around 150 congregants on Fridays, the Islamic day of the week similar to Christian Sundays. They have expanded since as the area’s population has grown, which led to the need for the prayer canopies.
The center is preparing for Ramadan, the Islamic month of daily fasting, which begins on Mar. 11 and goes until Apr. 11 this year. Congregants will meet at sunset there on Fridays, Saturday and Sundays to break fast during that time.
This story was originally published March 4, 2024 at 3:56 PM.
