GUNTER, Texas (KTEN) — Gunter residents have been waiting for a chance to speak about the BNSF Railway proposal to build a logistics center in their community.

They got that chance on Thursday evening.

"They don't belong here; we don't want them," said Gunter resident Annie Rich. "If the town you want to come in doesn't want you, then you might want to go somewhere else... and they need to go somewhere else, because we're not giving up."

The BNSF proposal involves almost 950 acres on the east side of State Highway 289 just north of Mackey Road.

Jennifer Jolly has a problem with such a facility in her community.

"The pollution, the noise, the traffic, and the fact that they came in and never really asked us what we thought about it," she said. "They did everything behind the scenes and behind our backs, and it's just been shady from the very start."

The meeting was cut short after city council members failed to show up, leaving Gunter residents upset and seeking answers.

"They knew what they were doing; they contacted [the Texas Municipal League]; they knew exactly the consequences of such, and they decided to follow through with it," Rich said. "They're very cowardly, and they're going to have to live with that for the rest of their life."

Gunter residents are hoping that the new city council members who will take over next month will decide to reject the BNSF plan.

If not, some say the matter could wind up in court.