Site Work Begins for $60M Hotel-Convention Center......in Frisco

[gc]

Site Work Begins for $60M Hotel-Convention Center
By Connie Gore - Sep 15, 2003 11:59AM
http://www.globest.com/RMILEFRCEKD.html

FRISCO, TX-Site work begins this week on a $60-million hotel and convention center, where bookings also have begun for a project that's roughly 18 months from a ribbon-cutting.
James L. Gandy, president of the Frisco Economic Development Corp., tells GlobeSt.com that the interest for bookings validates the move to team with Hammons to get a convention center with an attached hotel, one of the few such pairings on the industry's building circuit. Hammons and the city signed a 20-year contract with renewal options plus penned a ground lease for the hotel's site area, according to Gandy.

Work on the 320-room Embassy Suites hotel leads off the project, with the 100,000-sf convention center set to break ground in four to six months. The buildings will deliver simultaneously in February 2005. The project features a 48,000-sf ballroom with a seating capacity of about 2,400 to make it the fourth-largest venue of its type in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. The project's vertical date has not been set, Gandy says.

The hotel-convention center combo will sit on a 75-acre tract along with a $26-million Dr. Pepper StarCenter, an ice skating arena that doubles as a training headquarters for the NHL's Dallas Burn and Junior A Texas Tornado team, and the $28-million Dr. Pepper/Seven Up Ballpark for the Double AA Frisco Roughriders. A gymnastics facility will round out the athletic offerings of the Southwest Sports Realty's master plan for the $300-million public-private undertaking, which also calls for 75,000 sf of retail, more than one million sf of class A, mid-rise office buildings, residential component and a second hotel. Four miles to the north of the project site, Hunt Sport Group acquired 144 acres for a $65-million soccer stadium.

Steve Minton of Springfield, MO-based John Q. Hammons Hotels Inc. is the architect for the hotel-convention center, which includes a 1,000-space parking garage. CDI Contractors LLC of Little Rock, AR is the general contractor of the $40-million, privately funded hotel and $20-million city-funded convention center.

[CTroyMathis]

http://embassysuites.hilton.com/en/hotels/content/DALFSES/media/images/DALFSES_Embassy_Suites_Hotel_Dallas_Frisco_TX_home _large.jpg


http://ism.infinityprosports.com/Uploads/55//Ballpark/hotel_convention_area.jpg

The News had an under-construction image of it Sunday in the Biz section.

[warlock55]

Well, at least it will provide a marginally more interesting backdrop to the Roughriders' stadium than the giant mall. :rolleyes:

[freewaytincan]

At least the streets are big enough...

[Lakewooder]

Embassy Suites...how generic.

[lagunadallas]

I've you've been to the stadium, they did a remarkably good job with the design and aesthetics. That whole development will be a lot more interesting than most people would expect to find way up north.

[freewaytincan]

I especially admire how they made the convetion center seperate from the hotel building. That's thinking!

[drumguy8800]

Burn in Hell, Frisco!!! :cheers:

I am now boycotting Embassy Suites.

[bloodandpopcorn]

Well, it's certainly a bland looking hotel that seems to be taken right out of some lower-priced ski town...

But whatever floats their boat.

[crescentboi]

That 2nd rendering does look aweful! Let them have another Embassy Suites....and as said...very generic looking.

Which kindof off topic...but I've lost respect for Embassy Suites before this after they did a bad redo of the hotel on Stemmons and a HORRIBLE paint job on the hotel at 161 and 183 in Irving. I think that property was a beautiful building...very different from most hotels that you see and then they stuck this puke green color all over it! "That's a Technical Foul!"

[drumguy8800]

The one off of Stemmons is all.. Latin-looking, right? Very unfitting. The entire Stemmons corridor needs a bit of a facelift, in fact..

[freewaytincan]

Burn in Hell, Frisco!!! :cheers:

I am now boycotting Embassy Suites.

Yes yes, calm down, shhh sh sh, it's going to be okay...

[freewaytincan]

The one off of Stemmons is all.. Latin-looking, right? Very unfitting. The entire Stemmons corridor needs a bit of a facelift, in fact..

Yeah. All Blade Runner. Then the one at the High Five. Don't even know how to describe that.

[psukhu]

Take a step back. This sounds like the Dallas threads on the Houston forum...

[tamtagon]

Good for Frisco. The folks there identified an opportunity, and secured the development. As much as anyone else, I want more stuff downtown, but most of those drawn to these developments would not consider a CBD location. The conventions which book into Frisco's new convention center most likely are not potential customers for Dallas.

The sports venues represent the bulk of development which was pulled out of Dallas, but really, if no one in Dallas makes it happen, there is no reason to displace juvenile frustration onto Frisco.

[Kelley USA]

I have actually seen the hotel in Frisco- it's actually very nice. Sort of resembles the Embassy at Grapevine Mills Mall. It is very suburban in design- but I think that whole area is coming along nicely. With the Ballpark, hotel, townhomes and plenty of restaurants all within walking distance- it's far better than anything that's been accomplished over in Arlington!

[gc]

Take a step back. This sounds like the Dallas threads on the Houston forum...

Yes it does.

I am not fond of Frisco because I think some of it's more recent success has hurt Dallas a bit. However, I must say that the city seems to be doing a lot stuff the right way. Good for them.

[CTroyMathis]

This thread actually lasted a year before the poke-checking began!
Looks like it'd be a very cool view from the hotel looking onto the field.

BTW, the Riders are doing well in the playoffs.

[gc]

^ How funny. It lasted a one year and a couple of hours before the onslaught began. Thanks a lot Troy!

[rantanamo]

I have nothing bad to say about the physical environment they are building downtown and at their sports complex. That ballpark is greatness, and the area around is very nice. All they are missing is a rail line coming up the tollway. As for their business targeting and aggressiveness, I will continue to 'hate' on them.

[slfunk]

I'm just coming the conclusion that Frisco is trying to build everything that a fully developed suburb has plus some all over night. Which works for them, obviously. The thing that is humorous to me is just about every store up there is has been able to build their 'roadside' style building including Embassy suites. Nothing unique about them. So you have the wonderful world of a sea of parking lot and an occassional small building plopped in amungest them. But it does work for that part of north Dallas, it just makes my stomach turn at the lack of respect these developers/people have for the land.

[freewaytincan]

I just realized, in the renderings, what is the color of the roof going to be? Red or green?

[Man of Leisure]

I have nothing bad to say about the physical environment they are building downtown and at their sports complex. That ballpark is greatness, and the area around is very nice. All they are missing is a rail line coming up the tollway. As for their business targeting and aggressiveness, I will continue to 'hate' on them.
:cheers:

[drumguy8800]

Originally Posted by rantanamo
I have nothing bad to say about the physical environment they are building downtown and at their sports complex. That ballpark is greatness, and the area around is very nice. All they are missing is a rail line coming up the tollway. As for their business targeting and aggressiveness, I will continue to 'hate' on them.

That and the fact that the people who move there are QUITE literally 'fleeing their old home closer to Dallas because people's skin color started to get darker.' To a Northern Dallasite, that's a recipe for disaster. And that's a concoction that they cook up for themselves.

And of course an attempt to pull convention-goers away from Dallas. And shops, and restaurants, and hotels, and CORPORATIONS, and middle-and-high-class citizens. Basically, all the money.

[sogod]

You know, not everyone up there is white. Or middle-upper class. Or used to live in Dallas. Or is utterly racist.

[Columbus Civil]

http://www.ci.frisco.tx.us/waterwise/images/capt_blindfold_sm.jpg

[psukhu]

Drum,

Since the 70's, high tech companies have always preferred suburban locations in big metros, or inside of the core city in a smaller metro. As a high tech worker myself, I traveled the country and saw this first hand coast to coast. Let's look at the today's most active NASDAQ stocks. (http://dynamic.nasdaq.com/aspx/mostactive.aspx?exchange=nasdaq&mostactive=adv) You'll see that most of the tech giants are located in the suburbs.

If the northern suburbs in Dallas didn't exist, the DFW tech giants would have moved to other metros. (Remember DFW is gaining 150,000 people a year) The DFW suburbs are doing a great jobs getting workers and companies from other metros. (And those people all say they are moving to "Dallas", when they are really moving to Plano or another suburb)

I've lived in Oaklawn for three years, and I've reverse commuted the entire time. Tech jobs were plentiful in the suburbs, but I couldn't find anything downtown. My wife, on the other hand, is an attorney. She can only find jobs in the CBD. The few attorney jobs she finds in the suburbs are low paying.

It’s just a matter of industry. Legal and Financial services firms prefer urban environments. Their workers are highly paid and can afford the best housing in the city. Their clients look at the company’s location as a sign of the company’s success.

High Tech firms need to keep costs down because they are competing with companies in Asia. If costs are not kept to an absolute minimum, then the foreign competition will get all the business.

I know this is hard to understand because you are a student and you haven’t worked in other big cities.


That and the fact that the people who move there are QUITE literally 'fleeing their old home closer to Dallas because people's skin color started to get darker.

Also you shouldn’t make generalizations.

[freewaytincan]

Where did that come from, exactly, CC?

[Columbus Civil]

City of Frisco website.

[freewaytincan]

City of Frisco website.

I was afraid you would say that.

Hmm, I can't seem to find the edited Plano version I did of that. You know, the blond.

[Columbus Civil]

He was hot.

[sogod]

Since the 70's, high tech companies have always preferred suburban locations in big metros, or inside of the core city in a smaller metro.
I've noticed that there are few tech jobs in the core too. I didn't know it started in the 70s though.

Also being in the high tech industry, this trend sucks in a way, because I think it would be nice to live in the city like you and your wife do, but my future spose is in the tech industry too and living in Dallas would be pretty inconvenient 5 days out of the week for us. Of course, higher wages are also nice.

[drumguy8800]

It’s just a matter of industry. Legal and Financial services firms prefer urban environments. Their workers are highly paid and can afford the best housing in the city. Their clients look at the company’s location as a sign of the company’s success.

Is there some kind of geographical reason that high-tech jobs cannot locate in the CBDs of major cities?

You saying that high-tech companies locate in suburbs is a rather 'duh' statement. It's almost as obvious as 'middle and upper class families with kids live in suburbs.' They both follow the same trend.. the only difference is, tech is brand new, and instead of migrating, they just flat out STARTED where the middleclass and highclass base was.



High Tech firms need to keep costs down because they are competing with companies in Asia. If costs are not kept to an absolute minimum, then the foreign competition will get all the business.

I see some truth in this, but do realize that buying up some land in Fair Park would be a heck of a lot cheaper than locating in Frisco. Rather cost-effective, actually.. but then again, they would have to have lots of security. (oh my god, i heard black people live there...?)

I do realize how all of this trending works, and it makes sense to go with the flow.. but wouldn't it be better if people went against the flow and Dallas developed a much nicer, active, affluent innercity? Your arguments make sense. They can just be countered with arguments that make just as much sense.

And, just so everyone knows, that was sarcasm, not racism.

[psukhu]

II see some truth in this, but do realize that buying up some land in Fair Park would be a heck of a lot cheaper than locating in Frisco.

I wish they would do this too.

I think that it is easier for developers to put together the large parcels of land in the ‘burbs. The parcels tend to be smaller in the urban areas and they also may have out of state owners that don't care about urban renewal.

Look at the lot across from 1001 Ross. (the one the liquor store is on) Fram wants to develop it, but is having a hard time getting all the land owners to sell at a reasonable price. Imagine trying to put together something for a larger customer, like TI or Intuit.

Maybe the city can step up and use eminent domain to help get land like this into the hands of developers. (Or is that too much government intervention?)

Also, there's the whole displacing the poor thing. A lot of developers in the northeast run into this. Jay-Z is trying to build the Nets Arena in Brooklyn. Many people are fighting him on this because he’s replacing the lower end apartments with stuff similar to Victory.

[Lakewooder]

I noticed on TV, that even though the the Frisco ball team is in the playoffs, that there are a lot of empty seats. Kinda like the ballpark in Arlington. Kinda like the new Cowboys stadium.


Unlike the AAC.

[freewaytincan]

He was hot.

I know. He looks like me.

[freewaytincan]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v169/centerpoint/Fall%202004/CaptainPlano001.jpg

[noelamador]

Frisco unveils new brand

The Frisco Convention & Visitors Bureau unveiled a new brand this week.
&lt;script&gt; &lt;/script&gt; &lt;noscript&gt; &lt;a href="http://altfarm.mediaplex.com/ad/ck/2775-18842-5086-9?mpt=cxafmz,bayyiwxijKdzv&amp;backup=y"&gt; &lt;img src="http://altfarm.mediaplex.com/ad/bn/2775-18842-5086-9?mpt=cxafmz,bayyiwxijKdzv&amp;backup=y" alt="Click Here" border="0"&gt; &lt;/a&gt; &lt;/noscript&gt; <http://dc.bizjournals.com/event.ng/Type=count&ClientType=2&AdID=8977&FlightID=6463&TargetID=1811&Segments=1,11,16,147,178,965,1861,1905,1971,2051,2 096,2105,2148&Targets=42,61,136,165,874,1708,1748,1811,1890,1930 ,1940,1982&Values=25,30,46,50,60,72,78,85,92,100,110,150,152, 202,288,328,473,565,715,739,783,830,872,894,949,95 6,959,960,961,962,980,994,996,997,1009&RawValues=GEOMAJORMETRO%2Clos%2520angeles%2CDOMAIN TYPE%2C25%2CST_VERT_TOPIC%2Ctravel__lodging_conven tions&random=cxafmz,bayyiwxijKdzv>

The city, on Thursday, pinned the slogan "Discover Texas' Rising Star." The slogan is accompanied by a yellow star on an orange and blue background.

In April 2005 Frisco's conference center opens. It will feature 90,000 square feet of space, which includes a 25,700-square-foot exhibit hall, a 14,500-square-foot ballroom, and a 330-room hotel attached to the conference center.

Frisco also is home to the Dr Pepper/Seven Up Ballpark, the Dr PepperStarCenter and the Frisco Soccer and Entertainment Center, which will house a 20,000-seat stadium and 17 regulation soccer fields, among other amenities.

Web site: www.visitfrisco.com

[CTroyMathis]

The new $40 million Embassy Suites Hotel Dallas-Frisco has opened in the Frisco Sports/Entertainment Complex. The hotel is adjacent to the $20 million Frisco Conference Center, which is owned by the city and scheduled to open in June. The hotel and conference center are managed by John Q. Hammons Hotels Inc. The Embassy Suites, at State Highway 121 and the Dallas North Tollway, and the city's conference center will anchor the $300 million Frisco Sports/Entertainment Complex. The 1 million-square-foot complex is home to the $22 million Dr Pepper/Seven Up Ballpark and the $20 million Frisco Dr Pepper StarCenter.

[4th Generation]

Lakewood, they might be empty, but those tickets are sold. It's a lot of the corporate folks who are no-shows. It's a good place to put a team for those in that area who don't want to fight the traffic to make a 7pm game in Arlington and then have a decent drive to get back, all after paying higher ticket prices. The Texas Tornado hockey team there in Frisco also draws extremely well and plays in a very, very nice (albeit small) arena.

There are empty seats in Arlington because you have 81 home games in baseball! Not even the Yankees sellout every game. The teams that do have much smaller parks they play in. Rangers fans are better than most---especially considering the fact they have yet to win a single playoff series in their entire history, and the fans still come out.

[CTroyMathis]

Embassy Suites prepares grandest of openings (http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=14715146&BRD=1426&PAG=461&dept_id=528197&rfi=6)
By Mike Raye, Staff Writer 06/17/2005

On that theme, the Embassy Suites Hotel and Conference Center Dallas-Frisco will hold a gala grand opening celebration Wednesday, June 22. It is being touted as "the event of the season" and will mark a significant milestone in the development of Frisco as a destination for the convention and trade show industries.

The event is a fund-raiser for the Heritage Association of Frisco, with 700 tickets on sale for $51.50.

"The reason for the ticket price," explained Tony Felker, Frisco City Council Member and Heritage Association member, "is that Frisco is 103 years old. This event is going to be called 'Frisco-Now and Then' and will celebrate our past and our future. If you divide 103 in half, you come up with 51 and 50."

Although the math is a little off, the intent isn't: to showcase the history of Frisco that its future potential is built on, he said...

More at link.

[rantanamo]

The ballpark surroundings up there are super cool. Ameriquest/Cowboys Park should go there and study those surroundings.