The National Basketball Association (NBA) team Dallas Mavericks have chosen a site for their new arena, one that will take the team out of downtown Dallas (US) for the first time in the team’s history.
The team will look to build a new arena outside of downtown Dallas for the first time in the team’s history. The Mavericks have called the American Airlines Center home since 2001.
Entertainment District
‘fox4news.com’ stated that the Dallas Mavericks have chosen the site of the old Valley View Mall in Far North Dallas to build a new arena and entertainment district.
The team has entered into option agreements to purchase the land which covers 104 acres near Preston Road and the LBJ Freeway.
The Dallas Mavericks, often referred to as the Mavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a Member of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference.
The 21,146-seat American Airlines Center is a multipurpose indoor arena located in the Victory Park neighborhood in downtown Dallas, Texas (US). The arena serves as the home of the National Basketball Association (NBA) team Dallas Mavericks. The arena is also used for concerts and other live entertainment. It opened on July 17th, 2001, at a cost of $420 million.
‘Mixed-use Destination’
The Dallas Mavericks sent out a statement which read, “The Valley View site meets most of the criteria established at the outset of our evaluation process. It is our goal to stay in the city of Dallas and we believe this site provides the strongest opportunity to achieve that goal. We have the opportunity to create a vibrant mixed-use destination anchored by a state-of-the-art arena along with restaurants, entertainment options, public green spaces, and family-friendly experiences. Done thoughtfully and with community engagement a project of this scale will serve as a meaningful economic catalyst for Dallas and its residents.”
‘Enduring Partnership’
The Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson and the Dallas city Manager Kim Tolbert released the following statement on the Mavs’ move, “The Dallas Mavericks’ ownership has informed the city that it has signed an option agreement for 104 acres at the former Valley View Mall site for a potential new arena. We applaud the Dallas Mavericks organization for its continued commitment to our city. We will continue working with the Mavericks throughout this process and will do everything we can to support the team’s enduring partnership with Dallas.”
‘Generational Decision’
The Dallas city Councilman Adam Bazaldua sent out a statement which read, “Today (June 1st) our city received great news that the Mavericks would remain in Dallas and will be relocating to the Valley View site. This is great news for many reasons. First and foremost, we get to keep our beloved Mavs within our city limits but we also get to develop a site that has been vacant for far too long in a location with economic development tools already in place to infuse money in Southern Dallas in the Red Bird community. This is why the diligent leadership doesn’t count chickens before they hatch as demonstrated by some Council Members’ willingness to make a generational decision for an organization that hadn’t yet decided on their new stadium location.”
‘World-class Arena’
The Beck Ventures, which owns the land on which the Valley View Mall site is located on, released the following statement, “For 12 years the Beck Ventures has been honored to steward the Valley View property while working alongside the city of Dallas and the North Dallas neighborhoods with the conviction that this site would one day anchor a transformation of our city. The Mavs are exactly the kind of transformational partner this vision deserves and we look forward to seeing them build a world-class basketball arena and entertainment neighborhood that becomes the Northern anchor of a stronger, more unified Dallas.”
Mark Cuban, Mavericks Minority Owner, provided the following statement, “I like it. It’s in the city. Accessible from 635 and the tollway. Lots of positives.”
The Backstory
‘fox4news.com’ further stated that the Mavs head honcho Rick Welts had previously stated the team would like to decide their future arena location by July 1st. Now, the team has beaten that deadline by a month.
In January, the team reportedly narrowed their search to two locations: The current Dallas city Hall location and the former Valley View Mall site in Far North Dallas.
In April, the Mavs polled the season ticket holders on where they would like a potential new arena to be built. That poll featured three options: The sites in Downtown Dallas, North Dallas and a regional suburban location.
The team’s interest in the Dallas City Hall had been reported for months. Welts told a business luncheon in March that he and the Dallas City Manager Kim Tolbert had conversations “over a year ago” about using the current Dallas city Hall location for a new arena.
‘Go Mavs’
“Go Mavs. Hopefully they’ll bring us good business.”
KaiJai Alaman owns the Best Thing Flopping, a seafood restaurant near the Valley View Mall site. She hopes the restaurant will offer a cheaper alternative to the food at the new arena. This will be a good pre-game spot. You’re right across the street from the parking lot, you know?”
Alaman isn’t concerned about how a new Mavericks arena could affect her rent – “I wouldn’t put that as a concern. I feel like we can stand on our own and I feel like with the right intentions and the good motives we can all make money and be successful and make it thrive together. But, if they come in, of course, we’ll negotiate and try to stay as long as we can.”
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