Dallas Stars' relocation creates a new fan access problem
Photo credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
The Dallas Stars have officially chosen Plano's Shops at Willow Bend as the site for their new arena and entertainment district.
The team submitted a non-binding letter of intent to the Plano City Council, which will vote on the proposal Monday, June 8.
The announcement came just one day after the Dallas Mavericks revealed plans to leave the American Airlines Center for a new arena at the former Valley View Mall site.
Both leases at the AAC expire in 2031, and neither team plans to stay.
There is excitement of a billion-dollar development replacing a dying suburban mall.
What's getting far less attention is why the Stars ended up here in the first place - and what it costs a significant portion of their fanbase.
A court loss, not a grand vision, drove this decision
The Stars didn't leave the AAC by choice. A Texas judge ruled in May in favor of the Mavericks in their legal battle over arena management, effectively handing the Mavs control of the building.
The Stars had called the lawsuit a hostile takeover attempt. They lost.
Plano, which had been in discussions with the team for more than a year, offered a willing partner and a city council prepared to cover up to $700 million of the projected billion-dollar cost.
That's not a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as much as it's a well-timed escape route.
The fans this move leaves behind
The new site sits 20 miles north of downtown Dallas, and the nearest DART rail stop is more than eight miles away.
For fans in Fort Worth and southern Dallas, this is a significant problem.
The frustration is already visible. The Stars will no longer be in Dallas at all, joining the Texas Rangers, FC Dallas, and the Cowboys on the growing list of franchises that play outside city limits.
A hockey-specific arena sounds great on paper, but if the people who built this fanbase over two decades can't reasonably get to the building, the venue matters less than the geography.
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