Dallas City Wire

Irving Mayor Rick Stopfer reportedly made controversial comments regarding Catholic values during a City Council meeting on March 20. The meeting, which was posted on YouTube by the City of Irving, followed opposition from nearly 200 residents to a Las Vegas Sands casino proposal.

According to Fox4News, the Irving City Council convened to discuss a proposal by Las Vegas Sands Corporation to construct a casino resort at the former Texas Stadium site. All 200 residents who signed up to speak at the meeting opposed the casino plan, citing concerns such as increased traffic, crime, and gambling addiction. Marisa Robles, one resident, suggested adding "prohibited use" to explicitly ban casinos from the site. The lengthy meeting lasted nearly seven hours and concluded with the City Council voting 6-3 to amend zoning laws, removing the casino component but allowing for future development if Texas gaming laws change.

During the meeting, Patrick Thornton, an Irving resident, spoke against the casino plan and remarked that "Irving is literally 50 times the size of Las Vegas Sands Corp. You're bigger than them. Act like it." In response, Mayor Stopfer said: "That's exactly the problem. That shows the respect of a Catholic organization. I went to a Catholic school for 8 years and if I behaved like this, I'd have broken knuckles and a paddle on my butt."

Afterward, Thornton expressed his shock to Dallas City Wire: "I am shocked that the Mayor of Irving would use his official position to lash out publicly at protesters not by addressing their behavior but instead by insulting their religion." He added that it was offensive for Stopfer to promote stereotypes about Catholic students being physically abused in schools and called for his resignation.

According to Dallas Express, Stopfer's comments about "Catholics" and "the respect of a Catholic organization" were met with boos from attendees. He later claimed he had misunderstood a resident’s raised voice. Meanwhile, Councilman Luis Canosa received public support as an opponent of the casino plan; some encouraged him to challenge Stopfer in future mayoral elections. The meeting adjourned at 2 a.m.

Rick Stopfer has served as Mayor of Irving since his election in 2017 and was previously an Irving City Council member.