That morning, HALL Park, city of Frisco officials and other members of the local community gathered to celebrate the ribbon cutting of The Monarch HALL Park, a 19-story, 214-unit residential tower that represents the first phase of a $7 billion redevelopment at HALL Park.
This story ran in Star Local Media on October 12, 2023
Written by: Audrey Henvey
A $7 billion redevelopment project in Frisco met a major milestone this week.
“This is the first step in a rebirth,” developer Craig Hall said Thursday morning on the ground floor of a brand new building in Frisco. “And I think on a national basis, this is going to be a real example of how you can change an area and change with the times. We hope to be successful — time will tell — in really creating an environment that people want to be in, that they will come live here and that they will enjoy bringing grandchildren or children.”
That morning, HALL Park, city of Frisco officials and other members of the local community gathered to celebrate the ribbon cutting of The Monarch HALL Park, a 19-story, 214-unit residential tower that represents the first phase of a $7 billion redevelopment at HALL Park. The redevelopment is designed to elevate what has historically been an office park into a mixed-use destination.
The milestone moment on Thursday comes two years to the month after HALL Park celebrated the initiation of its new master plan, expected to take up 9.5 million square feet and involve an expected 20 years of future development that will result in an estimated $7 billion in value.
Other components of the redevelopment include a new Class AAA office tower, a full-service 224-key boutique hotel and suites and a 10,000-square-foot food hall.
The Monarch comprises 28 floor plans, including eight penthouse units with oversized balconies. The tower includes a 21,700-square-foot amenity level on the sixth floor featuring a club room, fully-equipped kitchen, resort-style pool, fitness studio and more. The building also includes views of The Ford Center nearby at The Star.
The redevelopment comes over 20 years after the first Hall Park office building opened in 1998.
“We started out with the idea that we wanted to build the best office park in the United States,” Hall said. “And about 2015-16, I realized that office parks had the likelihood of becoming like malls — in many cases malls have not done as well as they did when they first started.”
The redevelopment project is slated to carry the site 20 years into the future.
“We’re very honored to be cutting the ribbon on the first kind of step of a longer new journey,” Hall said.
During Thursday’s event, Frisco Mayor Jeff Cheney noted that about 8,000 people now visit Hall Park every day, more than the number of people who were in the city back when Hall acquired the Frisco property.
“And that number will grow,” Cheney added, “because now HALL Park is evolving, and it’s not just a place you go to work, but it’s going to be a place where people who don’t work here come to play, come to dine and perhaps come to watch a future performing arts show here in the city. And so we’re very proud of what this has turned into.”
Park construction continues
The celebration Thursday comes as construction continues adjacent to The Monarch on Kaleidoscope Park. The six-acre park will feature a mix of components including an arts plaza, a food and music pavilion, a recreation plaza, a dog park, a rain garden, a performance lawn and pavilion, technology terraces and more. The park is slated for a spring 2024 open date and is also a part of Hall Park’s redevelopment process.
The park represents a public-private partnership that includes the city of Frisco, the Communities Foundation of Texas and the Kaleidoscope Park Foundation. As part of the agreement, Hall provided 5.67 acres for the park and also dedicated $15 million to the foundation for the park. The city of Frisco provided another $15 million to fund the $30 million in construction required for the park. After construction is complete, the foundation is slated to deed the property to the city of Frisco, according to previous reporting by the Frisco Enterprise.
Cheney noted Hall’s $15 million contribution on Thursday.
“So that’s the type of partner that we have in Craig Hall,” Cheney said, “designing and planning the next 20 years and evolution of this project and let me just tell you, the best is yet to come.”
A performing arts venue
In addition, Frisco is in the midst of exploring potential for a performing arts complex in the city. The city entered into an agreement in June 2021 with Frisco ISD and HALL Group focused on a performing arts center. After it was announced in August 2022 that FISD would pursue a student-focused visual and performing arts center, it was stated that “The City of Frisco, along with its Community Development Corporation, will continue to partner with HALL Group to explore the construction of a world-class, community-centric and commercially viable performing arts center.”
In September, the city entered into an agreement with consultant Theatre Projects, allowing the city to move forward on an 18-month strategic planning and feasibility analysis centered around bringing a performing arts complex to the city.