OAK POINT — In the middle of this quiet Denton County town of farm land and oak trees sits a battle waiting to happen: an "English only" ordinance.

"Our founding fathers spoke English, our constitution, the Declaration of Independence was written in English—we're an English-speaking country," said Councilman Jim Almond.

He has proposed an ordinance forcing anyone who lives and works in Oak Point to learn and speak English.

"When you open up a package from a new computer you've purchased and they have directions written in several languages, that's frustrating," Almond added.

After watching Farmers Branch take the lead with an ordinance requiring renters to be legal U.S. residents, Almond says he was inspired to press on. Voter turnout in that city gives hope that the Oak Point ordinance will work.

Nick Smith just moved from Farmers Branch to Oak Point—populatoin 3,700—so he can be around more English-speaking people. He backs the English-only proposal.

"If I'm in Mexico, I'll speak Spanish; in Germany I'll speak German," Smith said. "I think it should be English in America."

But some Oak Point residents like Robby Rowlett worry that the ordinance will unfairly drive people away.

"I don't see how you can draw the line and say 'You got to' or 'You can't," he said. "How can you measure something like that if they're making the effort to learn it?"

"I don't care what they think," Smith said. "That's my opinion."

Councilman Almond said the proposed ordinance isn't about taking away diversity; he says it adds unity to a country divided by language barriers.

His plan would not, for instance, make it illegal for a Chinese restaurant to have a menu printed in Chinese; but such a menu would also have to be printed in English, and waiters would be required to speak English.

E-mail sslater@wfaa.com>