The Dallas Stars ownership wants to build an arena-village.
It is Election Day in Plano, Texas and it is an important day in the business history of the National Hockey League’s Dallas Stars franchise. The ownership picked out a location that it feels is the best spot for the business in the future in Plano but Stars’ ownership needs voters in Plano to approve a $700 million subsidy to build an arena-village. Plano is about 20 miles away from the Stars’ present arena. During the spring, Stars ownership signed a non-binding Letter of Intent to relocate to Plano. The action came a day after the National Basketball Association’s Dallas Mavericks ownership announced it was seeking to move to an abandoned mall site in North Dallas and would build an arena-village at the site. The two planned arena-villages would be about 10 miles apart. The hockey business’s lease to use the Dallas arena ends in 2031, the same year that the Mavericks ownership’s lease to use the same venue ends. “This project would present an once arena-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our franchise,” Dallas Stars Owner Tom Gaglardi said.
To raise money for the construction in Plano, tax money collected from a specially created entertainment district will go back to the developers instead of the municipality with the thought that the developer is creating jobs within the area. There also would be a hike in hotel room taxes along with a car rental tax hike and establishing other fees. The hockey business wants to build the arena-village by 2031. There are people opposed to Plano supporting a $700 million subsidy on the project. The Stars franchise President and CEO Brad Alberts remains “100 percent focused” on Plano and there is no staying in Dallas plan. That, of course, can change if Plano residents say no.
Evan Weiner’s books are available at iTunes – https://books.apple.
Evan can be reached at evan_weiner@hotmail.com
https://evanweiner1.substack.com
