Plano residents voice concerns over proposed Dallas Stars arena
The City of Plano is making sure residents who live around the proposed new home of the Dallas Stars will get along with their new neighbor.
That's why the city hosted the first of several community town halls to address any possible concerns before the $3 billion arena and mixed-use development is built.
We've known for several years that Willow Bend Mall is going away one way or another. Now the Dallas Stars want to call it home and create an arena bathed in green lights.
On Wednesday, the team and the city asked for feedback from surrounding homeowners so they will hopefully give the green light to the project.
Detailed artwork showed what it will look like. City staff and the developer were on hand to answer questions.
But Plano residents like Kirsten Gappelberg came to this open house to get reassurance that traffic around her neighborhood won't become a nightmare.
"I think during rush-hour and during peak times this area can get really congested and I want to make sure I can safely exit my neighborhood, get home when I need to get home, and it's not too disruptive to my way of life," said Gappelberg.
Gappelberg's neighbors were among hundreds of people who lined up around Willow Bend Mall today for a community open house that included the president of the Dallas Stars.
The team chose the site to build a new billion-dollar arena.
"I think most of the people here are very supportive of this, but there's a few that you know have concerns about traffic and other things that we need to understand what those are," said Brad Alberts, Dallas Stars President.
There have also been questions about the impact of possible light and noise pollution, as well as off-site parking.
"I'm concerned about our neighborhood being used as a parking lot," said Regina Anderson, Plano resident. "We are less than a half mile away and my concern is people looking for pre-parking and parking in our neighborhood and making it hard for residents getting out of our neighborhood."
One of the developers says the arena is only one component of a $3 billion project that will appeal to everyone who lives around it.
"It's going to be the best experiential retail in North Texas, and, I mean, to have 90 acres in this location in this city, with such a progressive city, I think the city works really well," said Bill Cawley, Cawley Partners.
For those who couldn't make Wednesday's open house, there is going to be another one Tuesday evening and the City of Plano has more information on its website if you search for Willow Bend District.
