Dallas Fort Worth Urban Forum

The latest addition to Frisco's major mall will be a Hyatt Regency hotel. It will be 15 stories tall with 295 rooms and 50,000 square feet of meeting space, and connect directly to the mall between Nordstrom and Dillard's. No construction or completion timeline was given.

https://www.visitfrisco.com/listing/hya ... isco/1802/

It looks great! I vaguely remember some early articles about this hotel was that it was supposed to be completed in 2019... Not sure about that now. Maybe 2020?

Oop! Found the press release!
http://www.friscotexas.gov/DocumentCent ... ndbreaking

Some notes: Broke ground today May 9th, 2018 and Is expected to be complete in the first quarter 2020.
It also says that it will have 18 stories (instead of 15) and contain 303 rooms (instead of 295).

That hotel will be the best looking piece of that mall. Stonebriar looks awful.

Tnexster wrote:That hotel will be the best looking piece of that mall. Stonebriar looks awful.

I KNOW! Stonebriar is LONG overdue for an exterior and interior makeover... The entire look and feel is so tacky and awful, for being one of the best performing malls in the country Im surprised they havent modernized or updated it by now... a shame.

DAFW wrote:

Tnexster wrote:That hotel will be the best looking piece of that mall. Stonebriar looks awful.

I KNOW! Stonebriar is LONG overdue for an exterior and interior makeover... The entire look and feel is so tacky and awful, for being one of the best performing malls in the country Im surprised they havent modernized or updated it by now... a shame.

So, what is their incentive to make updates when you are one of the best performing malls in the country?

It doesn't matter to me I will just go to NorthPark anyway cause its walkways are cleaner and the design is much more classic vs Stonebriar which tends to be just like any other mall with ads on every surface and the corridors are very mall like. I think this Hotel is a great addition though and wish NorthPark was doing the same already.

texasstar wrote:

DAFW wrote:

Tnexster wrote:That hotel will be the best looking piece of that mall. Stonebriar looks awful.

I KNOW! Stonebriar is LONG overdue for an exterior and interior makeover... The entire look and feel is so tacky and awful, for being one of the best performing malls in the country I'm surprised they haven't modernized or updated it by now... a shame.

So, what is their incentive to make updates when you are one of the best performing malls in the country?

That's kind of the problem because they don't feel like they need to make any changes since business is booming. I just wish they would give Stonebriar a more timeless look, as someone who lives by Stonebriar mall, I don't have an incentive to stay there longer than I need to be due to the crowds and because it's not really visually interesting or appealing to walk around and observe. I always find myself spending much more time in Northpark because of how beautiful and serene the atmosphere is...

cowboyeagle05 wrote:It doesn't matter to me I will just go to NorthPark anyway cause its walkways are cleaner and the design is much more classic vs Stonebriar which tends to be just like any other mall with ads on every surface and the corridors are very mall like. I think this Hotel is a great addition though and wish NorthPark was doing the same already.

Agreed, I have wondered about a hotel at NP as well. Seems long overdue and would be a nice addition to the center.

Man, that south-facing facade at Stonebriar looks like it's straight out of Looney Tunes.

Glad to see the hotel is going up. I wonder if the next evolution for malls like this one and Willow Bend (and others that won't just be torn down) is some Frankenstein-ian move of bolting on different amenities and destinations. Obviously Willow Bend has their Victory Plaza-esque thing going in, so that could be the way they try to keep up with the likes of Legacy West.

exelone31 wrote:Man, that south-facing facade at Stonebriar looks like it's straight out of Looney Tunes.

That's about the best description I have heard.

exelone31 wrote:Man, that south-facing facade at Stonebriar looks like it's straight out of Looney Tunes.

its going to age so bad .....how could they let that happen.

DAFW wrote:

exelone31 wrote:Man, that south-facing facade at Stonebriar looks like it's straight out of Looney Tunes.

its going to age so bad .....how could they let that happen.

It's probably like cars, homes, office buildings ... somebody in an ivory tower somewhere thinks it looks good then, so let's throw it together already, without thinking of how it will look later. Some stuff ages well, others, not so much.

I remember when it was built and I saw if for the first time, I thought it was hideous then.

I didn't understand it myself. It was kind of "look at me, look at me, I have more signs than the other malls". With most malls, you see signs for the anchors and the mall itself, and that's it. I guess the addition of the Hyatt will make it stand out in a different way now.

I think it just looks like a mall, but then again I've never understood what people see in Northpark architecturally. So I may be an outlier.

According to this hotel-industry magazine article, the Hyatt Regency at the mall is still set to open next year. The construction/skeleton has topped out, and will still be 18 stories tall.

In the article, was this unrelated (but interesting) note: there will be a 3000 square foot branch of Frisco's Public Library at Stonebriar, accessible from both the hotel and the mall.

https://www.hotelmanagement.net/develop ... 20-opening

More from the DBJ:
https://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news ... o.amp.html

The Hyatt Regency at Stonebriar is (partially) set to open June 1.

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/rea ... y-to-open/

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/ret ... following/
Lululemon is now opening a new store.

acclar11 wrote:https://www.dallasnews.com/business/retail/2022/04/14/friscos-stonebriar-centre-just-landed-this-athleisure-brand-with-a-cult-like-following/
Lululemon is now opening a new store.

This is somewhat surprising considering the fact their Legacy West store is less than 5 minutes away and is always packed.

undefinedprocess wrote:

acclar11 wrote:https://www.dallasnews.com/business/retail/2022/04/14/friscos-stonebriar-centre-just-landed-this-athleisure-brand-with-a-cult-like-following/
Lululemon is now opening a new store.

This is somewhat surprising considering the fact their Legacy West store is less than 5 minutes away and is always packed.

I think the bolded is the reason why.

If they wanted to have two stores in such a close radius of each other, they should have kept the Shops at Legacy store open instead of relocating.

https://www.omniplan.com/work/projects/ ... entre.html
Stumbled across this online. Curious to see if or when these renovations take place.

Proquest20 wrote:If they wanted to have two stores in such a close radius of each other, they should have kept the Shops at Legacy store open instead of relocating.

They probably figure they'll get better foot traffic in Stonebriar.

acclar11 wrote:https://www.omniplan.com/work/projects/stonebriar-centre.html
Stumbled across this online. Curious to see if or when these renovations take place.

They need to. Stonebriar literally feels like walking into a giant Walmart.

acclar11 wrote:https://www.omniplan.com/work/projects/stonebriar-centre.html
Stumbled across this online. Curious to see if or when these renovations take place.

Proquest20 wrote:

acclar11 wrote:https://www.omniplan.com/work/projects/stonebriar-centre.html
Stumbled across this online. Curious to see if or when these renovations take place.

They need to. Stonebriar literally feels like walking into a giant Walmart.

These came out a couple of years ago, maybe even 3 now... I think one tiny part of the mall has had some work done (that appears to be part of this plan, at least based on me tying the renovations to these plans based on the materials/style used)... Maybe a test..?

Anyways, could be wrong, but I feel like they're gonna sit on the reno plans for a hot minute, especially since a recession will lessen spending and affect business. However, it is Frisco, so...

I could also see them waiting and using this as a "trick up their sleeve" depending on how successful retail in the 1.42M new developments in/around Fields (PGA HQ). The Lesso mall is no longer happening, but I could see somebody coming in, grabbing some land up there, and pitching a "mixed-use" mall similar to those plans. Definitely think it'd be on the higher end though considering Frisco/Prosper border.

So the hotel in the rending is already built?

Tnexster wrote:So the hotel in the rending is already built?

Yes, Google Maps shows groundwork but Streetview has more recently updated pics...

Tnexster wrote:So the hotel in the rending is already built?

Yep, and opened its doors in June 2020. Think they had some sort of grand opening in 2021, but been open for over 2 years now.

https://locations.michaelkors.com/us/tx ... lsrc=aw.ds
Michael Kors has closed. Also, still no new word on the Lululemon slated to open.

I'm so glad Michael Kors is gone. I hope Coach is next.
Anyone think they may build a new store at Legacy West soon?

Proquest20 wrote:Anyone think they may build a new store at Legacy West soon?

Who, MIchael Kors? I don't know that there's space for them in Legacy West to be honest... I don't know which retail spaces are open, if any...

undefinedprocess wrote:

Proquest20 wrote:Anyone think they may build a new store at Legacy West soon?

Who, MIchael Kors? I don't know that there's space for them in Legacy West to be honest... I don't know which retail spaces are open, if any...

There are 4 vacant spots next to Tory Burch- Also Victoria's Secret has closed

acclar11 wrote:

undefinedprocess wrote:

Proquest20 wrote:Anyone think they may build a new store at Legacy West soon?

Who, MIchael Kors? I don't know that there's space for them in Legacy West to be honest... I don't know which retail spaces are open, if any...

There are 4 vacant spots next to Tory Burch- Also Victoria's Secret has closed

Oh wow, I had no idea Victoria's Secret closed its Legacy West location... When did that happen? And maybe I'm just dumb, but that's incredibly surprising.

undefinedprocess wrote:

acclar11 wrote:

undefinedprocess wrote:Who, MIchael Kors? I don't know that there's space for them in Legacy West to be honest... I don't know which retail spaces are open, if any...

There are 4 vacant spots next to Tory Burch- Also Victoria's Secret has closed

Oh wow, I had no idea Victoria's Secret closed its Legacy West location... When did that happen? And maybe I'm just dumb, but that's incredibly surprising.

A few months ago I think

Their Willow Bend store closed around the same time, too. I wonder if they’re generally consolidating stores or if something else is going on.

Did a bit of research on Stonebriar store sizes, and it appears that Anthropologie took over part of the former Abercrombie & Fitch space. According to their TDLR permit, the store's size is 10,114 Sq. Feet, so about 6,000 square feet of store space is in the Nordstrom wing, and the additional 4,000 is from the old Abercrombie. This means the 4,500 sq. feet needed for the new Lululemon will probably be from the remainder of the A&F space. They also have wallboarded the old Michael Kors which might mean a new tenant coming soon, as Stonebriar rarely covers up vacant spots unless their under construction.

It looks like Tiffany briefly had a store at Stonebriar. Was it a popup shop for the holiday season (it's gone now)?

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/ret ... tonebriar/
Mango is opening at Stonebriar as well. No details on where, but I would assume in the former Microsoft, or in the Nordstrom wing.

https://www.businessinsider.com/zara-st ... ist-2023-3

Massive eyeroll to the idea of a Zara coming to Stonebriar Mall. There's so many better places to open a store imo, like Sundance Square where H&M sued to be, Southlake Town Square, etc; I would've even hoped Willow Bend management would've started to actually care about leasing and got one as it would be a great improvement and would definitely bring people in. Sigh. I hope they open one at Watters Creek to even it out. Actual, I'm partially assuming that the list is sort of related to the Mango store openings, considering that North Star Mall is also getting a Mango.

Needless to say, as much as I love Zara I most likely will be sticking to the NorthPark and Galleria locations, unless they open another one up north.

Also a little surprised that down south, neither The Woodlands Mall, nor Market Street made the cut.

It makes total sense to me. Zara and Mango are direct competitors. Stonebriar will give them the most traffic in that area besides Legacy West and the proximity to Mango is what they are looking for.

R1070 wrote:It makes total sense to me. Zara and Mango are direct competitors. Stonebriar will give them the most traffic in that area besides Legacy West and the proximity to Mango is what they are looking for.

I kind of noticed that a lot of their list seems heavily inspired by locations where Mango intends to open up stores, for example, North Star Mall in San Antonio.

I would've hoped that they would've opened somewhere on the Fort Worth side of the metroplex (Clearfork or Sundance Square), or somewhere with close proximity to DFW Airport (Southlake Town Square). Stonebriar is still very much on the Dallas side, and is only a 15 minute drive away from the Galleria location, so it's not really much help.

H&M seems to be undergoing renovations, and I hope this brings more traffic to the Plano location.

Stonebriar mall owners need to do the obvious and do a full remodel of the place. It’s insanely dated, congested, and has little consideration of aesthetic in the mall’s design, almost like a Walmart. It’s why I would rather Willow Bend be more successful and don’t understand why nicer stores move to somewhere like Stonebriar. The clientele doesn’t line up.

Proquest20 wrote:Stonebriar mall owners need to do the obvious and do a full remodel of the place. It’s insanely dated, congested, and has little consideration of aesthetic in the mall’s design, almost like a Walmart. It’s why I would rather Willow Bend be more successful and don’t understand why nicer stores move to somewhere like Stonebriar. The clientele doesn’t line up.

Stonebriar doesn't have to look pretty.

It's at the intersection of two busy highways, far enough away to not be cannibalized by the Galleria and surrounded by an area with excellent demographics (rapid-growth, a ton of office parks and high-income).

Addison wrote:It's at the intersection of two busy highways, far enough away to not be cannibalized by the Galleria and surrounded by an area with excellent demographics (rapid-growth, a ton of office parks and high-income).

For now.

You just described Collin Creek Mall from when I first moved here.

LongonBigD wrote:

Addison wrote:It's at the intersection of two busy highways, far enough away to not be cannibalized by the Galleria and surrounded by an area with excellent demographics (rapid-growth, a ton of office parks and high-income).

For now.

You just described Collin Creek Mall from when I first moved here.

I'd say the Stonebriar / Legacy area is more like a modern-day Galleria / Addison area than Collin Creek.

That said, its saving grace for now is no one's looking to build a new mall and Legacy-type development further north along the Tollway in Prosper or Celina, which is part of the reason why the Galleria / Addison area has faltered.

In general, shopping centers need to evolve. The Galleria is surrounded by plenty of business parks and major hotels, has its own office towers, and hotel, and yet, if it retained the same look it had in the 1970s today, it definitely wouldn’t have aged as well as it did. Now obviously, it has its issues, like department stores not exactly doing well there, but it is far from a dead mall, at least when I was there this past weekend. Grapevine Mills, the most visited mall in the entire region, also underwent renovations a couple years ago so that it no longer had that “theme park” look a lot of Mills malls used to have. It also has stellar demographics, being so close to the DFW Airport, along with resort hotels and having plenty of entertainment options.

In general, I don’t see a reason as to why Stonebriar should keep up with its dated early 2000s/late 1990s look if it truly is in a different tier from Parks or Town East, which it really isn’t. It definitely brings me back to Collin Creek, but not in a good way.