Growing up we always had our hands in dirt or soil when helping dad with the Vineyards. I always complained and my Nona (grandma) would always say “oh, a little dirt never hurt anyone.” My dad would say “to most people dirt is just dirt, but to a farmer well that dirt is called potential.” I am sure these quotes belong to someone smarter than my dad and Nona but it did make me think, have you ever asked yourself, how much is the dirt below my feet worth? To an investor or developer dirt is like gold and depending on where it is located it can be worth a lot of money. Bill Gates began buying up land and farm operations years ago and while he leaves the farming to the professionals he understands land = asset appreciation. The dirt below the 2500 acres that PGA, Fields, and The Link is worth millions if not billions.
Developers and investors are betting heavily on Frisco which is great! With Mayor Cheney being so involved and so in love with the project I just assumed he would move out there to the greatest development of all time. Then at the debate he said he owns two pieces of property his personal home and his rental home (previous home). He said he does not own or have interest in any other land in Frisco. We were talking to a friend of ours who procured a lot in The Preserve, and we saw a picture he had taken of the builder’s map with written notes, and we thought, hmmm this looks interesting. Some realtor friends had said there was a rumor Jeff Cheney was given a lot or gifted a lot in The Preserve by the developer, but it was just a rumor.
Well by the looks of the picture Cheney and Keating have a lot under “Developer Hold” and it over looks …you guessed it…the 8th hole! It appears there is a “Friend & Family” row after all. I would love to hear from the Mayor what he plans to do with that lot next to his best friend Keating. Interestingly Cheney lives next door to Keating now in another community so I guess they are moving on up to the north side together like George & Weezy Jefferson. Cheney has to take his Florence with him which is Keating of course because you can’t leave Florence behind. Country singers Jordan Davis or Luke Bryan already said in their song “you can’t buy happiness, but you can buy dirt.” But did they buy it? I feel like breaking out in song since I don’t have any drums, and sing like Garth Brooks, ”Thunder rolls, And the lightnin’ strikes.”
Aristotle was an Ancient Greek philosopher who made pioneering contributions to all fields of philosophy and science. In his ethical masterpiece The Nicomachean Ethics he said there are three kinds of friendship: friendships of pleasure, utility, and of virtue. Friendship of utility is based on what two people can do for each other and it ends rapidly when the need is gone for the other person. The second is the friendship of pleasure, and it is based on the enjoyment of shared activities and is often short-tenured. In both utility and pleasure, the other person is not valued and is a means to an end. The friendship of virtue is stable because it is true, real, and good. This is the friend you like for who they are and often they push you to be a better person. To understand these friendships we must look at their anatomy. Anatomy is a branch of biology, and it is concerned with the study of the structure or internal workings of something. Through dissection or the separation of parts, much can be revealed.
July 2016: Robert Elliott formed The Associates, a full-service residential real estate brokerage.
So, who is Robert Elliott? Well, he is the Principal of Robert Elliott Custom Homes which has developed many projects throughout University Park, Highland Park, and the Preston Hollow area. Elliott also formed The Associates in 2016, mostly known in Dallas for its high-end luxury personal service and sold over 200 million in real estate in the Dallas area. Lastly, he is also a Partner in Stillwater Capital which was a fully integrated, private real estate company that has experience in design, construction, and operations of mixed-use developments, urban living communities, and custom projects. Stillwater is a key player in the PGA Frisco. They helped with the recruitment of bringing The PGA to Frisco, and is the developer behind The Link which neighbors the PGA Frisco.
May 2017: Jeff Cheney is elected Mayor for The City of Frisco
August 2017: Mayor Cheney and Councilman Will Sowell travel to Charlotte, NC for the 99 th PGA Championship. It was there they meet with PGA leadership and Robert Elliott and his fellow representatives of Stillwater Capital.
November 2017: The Associates, a brokerage owned by Robert Elliott announced its expansion to The Star in Frisco, and that The Cheney Group would be joining his brokerage.
In 2017, The Cheney Group was considered a powerhouse and recognized as one of the #1 Home-Selling Teams in the Frisco market with over $900 million in sales. There was no better place to set roots than the prominent location of The Star. At the end of 2017, Stillwater Capital, The Associates, and The Cheney group office together at The Star.
December 5, 2017: Cheney filed an affidavit recusing himself from an item on the agenda during the executive session. The reason listed is that he was a “partner with Stillwater Capital, Robert Elliott is also the broker for The Associates, my employer.”
Throughout 2018 talks and planning continued for both Stillwater Capital projects, the PGA Frisco and The Link in the same office where The Cheney Group presided. It is fair for one to assume he had plenty of access to all things PGA Frisco as the development was coming together.
December 2018: A notice was posted by The City of Frisco for a special meeting of the City Council on 12/4/2018 at 4:30 pm to authorize and execute the proposed Master Development Agreement for the PGA Frisco. Cheney announced he was turning the meeting over to Mayor Pro Tem Shona Huffman but first wanted to make a few statements. He said he would be recusing because of the conflict between his private business, his broker being Robert Elliott and Elliott’s partnership in Stillwater Capital which is involved in the project before the council that evening. He then laughed and said he thought it was a little of a loose association but after speaking with the city attorney it was best out of an abundance of caution to recuse himself. He said the last thing he would want to do is put any doubt into a project of this magnitude and how excited and proud he is to be a part of a special team in the City of Frisco. He then announced he was going to take “mayor’s privilege” to make a few comments. He talked about the PGA Frisco dream of Mr. Ovard and his family, his trip to The PGA championship, and how the council members deserve credit for taking an active leadership role to bring The PGA to Frisco since he had to recuse himself from most of the project. He made mention of how much hard work was put in by the City Manager George Purefoy and city staff. Lastly, he thanked The PGA for trusting Frisco and choosing Frisco as their new home. As everyone clapped he left the stage.
Wait, what? A little loose of an association?There is nothing loose about the association between The Cheney Group, The Associates, and Stillwater Capital. At this point, we have established the connection between the three groups and to anyone who is not blind, there is a clear relationship that creates a conflict of interest for Cheney. In our opinion, he should have removed himself from any conversation relating to these projects, from providing input on the projects, from talking to developers and other parties of the project.
Mayors Privilege?We tried to find the mayor’s privilege in the rules of the Texas Meeting Laws, but we couldn’t.Overall, he spoke for over 6 minutes and 45 seconds before the vote. We can all agree at this point the decision is made and the meeting is really about pomp and circumstance, but he should have reserved his comments until after the vote.
October 15, 2019: In a closed session, the council received legal advice regarding amendments to the Master Development Agreement executed by the City of Frisco with the players of the PGA Frisco development. Did Cheney participate in these conversations or recuse himself? We don’t know and doubt anyone will tell us.
November 19, 2019 Email: Mike Smith with TRT Holdings, who represents the Omni Hotel portion of the PGA Frisco deal sends out an email to several folks involved in the deal. Just a few are Fehmi Karahan (Fields) and his team, Robert Elliott (Stillwater) and his team, Chris Kleinert (Hunt) and his team, plus he included Jeff Cheney, George Purefoy, Ben Brezina, and Ron Patterson. He wants to host a lunch at his office to update everyone on the PGA Frisco project and catch up on what is happening on the surrounding land and discuss any issues that should be coordinated between each of the respective developments. A second email from Stephanie New the Executive Assistant at TRT Holdings for Mike Smith goes out asking if December 9, 2019, would work for everyone.
Two days later, Julie Venture with Frisco EDC responds Ron Patterson is available and Jeff Cheney responds he is available as well. That is where the email chain stops so we were curious why our PIR didn’t include the rest of the conversation which seemed odd. To say we are perplexed is an understatement. Why is Mayor Cheney the only one on the council invited, why not invite all the council members? Did Cheney or city staff update the rest of the council after this meeting what transpired at lunch. Remember, at this time Mayor Cheney’s personal business is under Robert Elliott so it is obvious he was involved in conversations regarding the development. Is his involvement a conflict of interest? Yes!
June 16, 2020: Did he oversee the consent agenda vote where two items pertaining to Omni Stillwater Woods Golf Resort was involved? Yes he did!
June 29, 2020 Email: Clay Roby (Stillwater) sends Jeff Cheney an email to his personal business account, not the city email. He states he and Robert are compiling information on The Link with the goal of creating a discussion piece for the joint Council and Planning and Zoning work session coming up. He would appreciate Cheney’s perspective on the development and what they can do to find “win-win” solutions to the outstanding items in the PD. Then he asks when Cheney has time to connect. Does Cheney give feedback to all developers on future presentations going before the council and Planning and Zoning? Does Cheney help every developer find “win-win” solutions to outstanding issues in the PD? Should the Mayor be involved in these discussion on the sideline without brining in other council members? Should this be considered a conflict of interest? Yes!
July 14, 2020 Email: Clay Roby (Stillwater) sends an email to Cheney letting him know that he and Robert have been working on a presentation for the joint work session coming up on Aug 3rd and would appreciate his feedback before they submit the final version to the city. He asks if Cheney has any time the next day to connect. Cheney responds from his personal email (cheneygroup.com) that the next day from 2-4 would work. Robert Elliott responds that the time works for him and the appointment is set. The next day before they are set for the 2pm call Clay Roby sends to Jeff Cheney a draft of the presentation again to his personal work email, not his official City of Frisco email. Again Cheney is giving feedback to a developer he wants us to believe he has no conflict with for a presentation that will be presented at a city work session. Did Cheney disclose to his fellow council members his involvement? We think it is a valid question.
Nov 02, 2020: Council received legal advice from the city attorney regarding the 3rd Amendment to the Master Development Agreement for the project. Did Cheney participate in the closed-session discussion since it involved Omni Stillwater Woods Golf Resort? We don’t know.
In 2021, The Link was coming up before the council. On March 12, P&Z approved the project, and it was listed on the council’s agenda for a vote on April 6, 2021. One would think Cheney should recuse himself from The Link (the other half) of the Frisco PGA project that Stillwater Capital was involved in. But, no!
March 22, 2021: Monument Realty founded by Eddie and Tiffany Burns acquired The Associates owned by Robert Elliott and The Cheney Group with Jeff Cheney. The two groups moved separately the same day to a new brokerage to break up the connection or so-called conflict of interest. Cheney has said his move to Monument cleared any conflict he had with the projects. Really, we would argue that regardless of his move to Monument it does not erase or expel his interwoven relationship to the project or the players in the project.
Fast forward the VHS tape (I would say Betamax but no one remembers that) to June of 2021, Cheney said in his response to an ethics complaint filed, the investment group handling the PGA is Omni Stillwater Woods per the city’s agreement. He also said there is no conflict of interest because there are no contractual agreements with The Associates, Stillwater Capital, or Monument Realty. Part of his rebuttal was the complaint’s information was inaccurate.
April 6, 2021: Now rewind the VHS tape to the City Council meeting where The Link was before the council. Two of the speakers “in favor or for” the project were Clay Roby and Cole Henley and the minutes state they are there on behalf of Stillwater Capital Investments (not Omni Stillwater Woods). When Mr. Roby approached the podium he stated, “he was there to speak on behalf of The Link application, as the Managing Director with Stillwater Capital one of the investors of The Link property before you tonight.” Well, well, well if Cheney wants to argue semantics at his ethics complaint then we would like to argue the same back. See the semantics of the language used by Mr. Roby does not state he is with Omni Stillwater Woods so that means Cheney’s argument given during his ethics rebuttal is null and void and there is a conflict of interest.
The meeting continued and a few of the council members raised concerns. Mayor Cheney’s response was swift and immediate and you could tell he appeared aggravated when he respond to the council’s concerns saying this is a new asset class to Frisco. He continued and said “when it comes to density it’s a political dog whistle and good for political campaign mailers. When you speak to people and actually educate them (because he thinks we are stupid) on how multi-family works, how it actually reduces traffic and builds our commercial basis they are okay with it. It’s ironic to him that people who consider themselves conservatives don’t look at the economics behind the developments and how it’s driving our tax bills down and it’s the model for how we build Frisco.” He then went on to talk about the challenges of the property and the topography of the area. It would be one of this council’s greatest failures if we do not allow the only piece of property with unobstructed views of the golf course to be developed into anything less than spectacular. To do that we must have blend-use projects. Mayor Cheney continued with his selling and pushing of the development and ended up talking for a little over 5 minutes.
Then Mr. Roby said at the podium he understands what it is like to knock on doors because at Stillwater we have a residential development arm called Robert Elliott Custom Homes … Stop the presses! Again, Roby calls the company behind The Link Stillwater Capital Investments and acknowledges Mr. Elliott’s residential arm as part of the company. Closing the meeting Cheney said they should table the issue, then said he thought they were all under the same understanding based on all the work sessions and meetings and it was clear he was annoyed at the council’s concerns and with the delay.
April 16, 2021, Email: Clay Roby (Stillwater) sends Cheney an email with a presentation and notes page 15 is a new slide that shows the PD adjustments they are contemplating to propose based on the meetings with the council members they had the last few weeks and he would like Cheney’s feedback. The next day Cheney responds he likes the presentation and asked what the feedback has been from the council. Clay responds the same day Bill Woodard appreciated the commitment to the trial and said SWC has his support. Brian Livingston and Dan Stricklin like the reduction in the residential units but would not commit support. They plan to meet with Shona on Thursday. They have not been able to meet with Will Sowell but anticipate he will support the project.
April 30, 2021, Email: Clay Roby (Stillwater) sends Cheney via his personal email a copy of the presentation he plans to present at the council meeting next week. He mentions they have been meeting and talking with several on the council to answer any questions from the April 6 council meeting. He mentions good feedback from most on the council, but Dan and Brian might still be on the fence. Then Clay asks Cheney if he has had a chance to discuss with anyone on the council and to let him know if they need to connect prior to the upcoming Tuesday council meeting. The funny thing is there is no response in the emails from the PIR. Why was the response back to Clay not provided? Where is it?
May 1, 2021, Email: Roby (Stillwater) sends an email to Cheney that they are working on the press release in anticipation of next week’s approval. He wanted to see if Cheney would be willing or able to provide a quote for the release. On May 3 Cheney responded absolutely he would like to help and asks if their marketing people want to write something up that he can approve so it is on message. Then he also offers something along the lines of: “The Link delivers to promise of capitalizing on the PGA and Omni Resort and Convention Center. The links delivers quality office with unobstructed views of the golf course as well as a mix of entertainment and destination dining. The large open space and trail connectivity will make the residential components highly livable. The Link is a world-class project that will maximize the energy of the PGA Frisco brand.” Should the mayor allow a third party marketing like Stillwater to write the copy for him to approve for their own marketing materials? Probably because his statement makes no sense but seriously no the Mayor should be using the city’s internal communication department. Again it is an appearance that some would consider to be a clear conflict of interest.
May 4, 2021: City Council tables The Link to May 18, 2021. During the public hearing, Clay Roby once again said he was there to speak on behalf of the project applicant and that he is the Managing Director at Stillwater Capital and is responsible for SWC mixed-use projects. Once the public hearing closed Mayor Cheney points out there a few more questions to be answered so they are tabling until the May 18 meeting.
May 18, 2021: Council Approves The Link
Roby spoke again on behalf of the applicant and the minutes produced by the city again list his company as Stillwater Capital Investments (not Stillwater Capital Woods). Mayor Cheney points out they have been talking about the project for a long time and it has been tabled a couple of times. He points out the odd shape of the land, the topography, and how this land before the PGA Frisco would have been developed into boring office space. Today we sit here discussing a billion-dollar development because of the halo effect of the PGA Frisco. This odd, shaped property is probably one of the most important zoning cases the city has ever had, and it had to be looked at in the totality of the whole region. Because of how important this project is the city has never been more demanding, more difficult to work with, and more challenging with any developer. In closing, Cheney says this is a project we should be celebrating, and he feels like we must justify making a world-class decision that will impact generations in their community. He told the developer they are excited about their project and proud to move forward with them as partners, and that we’re grateful they see Frisco as the city to invest a billion dollars in over the next 10 to 15 years. Now here is our question, does Cheney really feel citizens need him to justify the project or does Cheney feel the need to justify it because he knows the scrutiny his involvement could possibly play?
If you remember at the end of my blog, The Silicon Valley of Golf I was left pondering a few questions. Did Cheney have behind-the-scenes access to the inner workings of these 3 world-class developments since officed with Stillwater Capital and worked with The Associates? The answer is a resounding YES! Cheney clearly has had a relationship with The Associates, Robert Elliott, and Stillwater Capital since 2017. Robert Elliott was his boss (broker) and all three offices are together at The Star for several years. Moving to Monument Realty on March 22, which is 15 days before the expected vote on The Link project does not absolve him of a conflict of interest. Did he recuse himself from all conversations or meetings with developers? He stated in some of his comments that he had conversations with the developers and based on the emails clearly he did not recuse himself. Did he recuse himself from council discussions, due to his relationship with Stillwater Capital? No, he spoke at nauseum at the April 6, May 4, and May 18 council meetings. To anyone watching, it was clear his determination to help get this project approved. Is that because it was a good project, because of his relationship with the applicant, or because he had an investment in the deal? We honestly can’t determine his motivation because of the clear glaring violations that took place. Is it fair for the mayor to argue language semantics as a defense during his ethics complaint when clearly the applicant stated their name as Stillwater Capital during the approval process on record and it is listed on city minutes the say way? No, he should not be able to bend the rules to suit himself when necessary but in Cheneyville we live by his rules. Should Cheney be helping the developer with presentations and marketing materials? Should he be sharing private conversations that he has had with other council members with developers or using those conversations to help developers “win” approvals? Should Cheney be doing “city business” via his personal real estate email? No, absolutely not! When someone files a PIR does the city actually review his personal email or do they ask him to turn over documents pertaining to the request on good faith? How can he say his personal business is not a conflict when he is using it to run city business as well? The city is asking residents to “trust me” we did the right thing. Based on what we have already unloaded would you “trust the city?” Probably not, since all these things give off the perception of shady behavior.
We agree this is a project to be proud of, a project that will change Frisco forever which is a great thing. Stillwater Capital and all of those involved have done a phenomenal job in bringing this together and creating a true masterpiece. Where we disagree is Mayor Cheney’s clear and almost blaring horn-honking conflict of interest. Our concerns are ligament when our mayor is so closely connected with a project, and it is justifiable for us to ask about his relationship whether it be a friendship or business relationship. We don’t think it is out of line to say something smells like shit and up to the end there was a major conflict of interest. Trying to “CURE” a conflict just weeks before the vote for The Link should have everyone’s eyebrows raised including the city attorney unless he fell asleep. What we cannot understand is why are citizens not outraged, asking questions, standing up, and saying something is not right here. It is time for citizens and the media to ask questions and the first should be what shady shit is happening in Frisco?
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Curiosity is lying in wait for every secret.” One of the driving forces behind human discovery is curiosity. What if Galileo never bothered to look through his telescope? He would have never observed celestial bodies proving that there were objects in space. A person’s curiosity to look at something and then want to know the story behind it is what changed the world thousands of times. I am no Galileo, but my curiosity is what drives me to investigate to find the truth.
For years drivers along the DNT, Panther Creek and 380 roadways wondered “what will these fields develop into one day?” I don’t think Frisco residents ever expected 3 world-class developments centered around the PGA & Golf. There is no doubt about it, the deal is a win-win for Frisco and its residents. The portion that intrigued me was Fields, a 2100-acre master-planned community. Plans for villages (neighborhoods) and a network of trails built around the natural topography sound brilliant! It soon became clear with the Cheney Group announcement of being the Fields experts, that he had access to information, homesites, and builder information before anyone else in real estate and that was a red flag for me.
I am not the first to ask questions or have the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Take a moment and browse social media and you will see residents ask questions in regard to Cheney profiting personally from his position as Mayor. In May of 2018, Texas Scorecard released an article by Ross Kecseg asking will the Mayor profit from the PGA deal. On June 25, 2018, Texas Scorecard writer Ross Kecseg released another article regarding the Frisco mayor lashing out at PGA deal coverage and that he has threatened to sue Texas Scorecard to uncover their sources. The articles questioned the conflict between Stillwater Capital, The Associates and the closely tied relationship to Cheney.
In going through documents from a PIR request, I came across a series of emails. The first email was August 1, 2019 and it was written to Mayor Cheney from Holly McCall, Admin Assistant to the Mayor & Council. It reads On Thu, Aug 1, 2019 at 11:23 AM Holly McCall wrote: Mayor Cheney, A gentleman named John Baumgarten, from (redacted) (investors group), came by the office this morning to invite you to attend a dinner on Sept. 10 at 6 pm at Del Frisco’s, Legacy West. Beau Welling plans to speak about building golf courses, including the PGA project. They would love for you to participate in a Q&A at the end if you are willing. Mr. Baumgarten says this is a group (of @ 25 investors) with an interest in golfing and the PGA Project, and that they “are not selling or promoting anything.” They have also invited some of the Omni Group and Joe Trahan from Channel 8. John Baumgarten Principal, Private Wealth Management
The same day at 10:13 pm, Lorie Medina who was known as Mayor Cheney’s Chief of Staff responded. It’s important to note that Lorie Medina was not a city employee, she was paid by the Mayor $5000 a month from his campaign.
On Aug 1, 2019, 10:13 PM -0500, Lorie Medina , wrote: Would you like me to ask Jon McCary about this firm? This could be a good discussion since we are trying to attract VCs and PE firms to Frisco for Inspire Frisco. Also, it might be good to include him at the meeting, if possible.
VC standards for Venture Capital Firm and they invest in industry startups and PE stands for Private Equity Firm and they buy companies and overhaul them to earn a profit. Capital for investments comes from outside investors. Inspire Frisco helps to build a network for Frisco entrepreneurs.
August 2nd the Mayor replies from his Cheney Group personal email where he was a Broker Associate with The Associates Realty and it reads On Fri, Aug 2, 2019 at 12:58 PM Jeff Cheney wrote: Would love his input if he thinks it’s a worthwhile use of time. I do not normally want to kill an entire evening unless necessary. Jeff Cheney, CPA Broker Associate The Associates Realty One Cowboys Way Frisco, Tx 75034 www.CheneyGroup.com
Were the emails a big deal? We didn’t think so until we hit another email sent from John Baumgarten to Jeff Cheney on September 11, 2019. It reads
From: “Baumgarten, John” Date: September 11, 2019 at 11:24:14 AM CDT To: Jeff Cheney JCheney@friscotexas.gov Subject: B & B dinner
Jeff, Cannot thank you enough for carving out some time for us last night and sharing the history and vision of this spectacular project. Congratulations for putting this audacious project together. As a small token of my appreciation, I would love to make a donation to a charity that is connected to this project – let me know what you suggest. I would also like to get on the unofficial lot list – let me know what is involved in that. Thank you again. Maybe we can host another event as we get closer to the next phase being completed. Again, thank you for participating. My guests really enjoyed it based on the early feedback. John
To understand why this email is important you must rewind to the Facebook post on 10/13/22 where the Cheney Group announced they had been working on somethingspecial for the last year. They were excited to announce the Cheney Group team were the Fields Experts and that The Preserve at PGA was teeing off and lots were going fast. The Perry Mason in me had some serious questions.
First, the email above was from 2019 and John asked how to get on the unofficial lot list mentioned at the dinner and what was involved in that. What unofficial lot list and were these lots for the Preserve village? Was Mr. Cheney the only one with access to sell these lots? How many of the unofficial lots were sold prior to the public announcement lots were available? The post said his group had been working for the last year, but the emails were from 2019 so did he work on it for more than a year?
Second, John also mentions making a donation to a charity connected to the project and we safely assumed he meant the PGA/Fields project. We were surprised that Mr. Cheney forwarded that to Lorie Medina to ask her thoughts. She responded with how about we send him to www.giveforfrisco.com and he can pick a charity of his choice. Wait a minute! Was the donation part of getting on that unofficial lot list? Was there an expectation that if a donation was made the person would have more access to the unofficial lot list? The fact that he forwarded the email to Lorie asking for her thoughts, does that display his willingness to accept a donation?
Third, the thank you email was sent to the mayor’s official email address. However, we did not see a response to it! Does that mean the mayor never responded to the gentleman’s two questions? Does it mean he replied through his private email since he knew any communication could be a public record? To give the benefit of the doubt, we are going to assume it was not included since it was out outside of the scope of the PIR.
Truth and Transparency are what residents want and it seems like we always moving in circles without an end or satisfactory answer. The emails by themselves seem like little concern but the emails as a whole have very shady implications. Even if nothing wrong took place, the appearance of impropriety is enough to cause doubt that shady shit is happening in Frisco.
I remember as a teenager sitting around the living room with my family once a week to tune in to our favorite family show Murder She Wrote. Jessica Fletcher played by Dame Angela Lansbury was not cocky, but she did know her own skills. She knew to ask questions when she didn’t understand something and how to rely on others who may have the expertise in an area she didn’t. My favorite thing she used to say episode after episode was “Now, I may be wrong, but frankly, I doubt it.” She taught me to be curious and to ask questions which is why once my interest was peaked I could not stop diving into what I believe is the Shady Shit happening in Frisco.
As I said in my last blog I had all these questions about how Mayor Jeff Cheney could represent Fehmi’s Fields lots and advocate for Universal at the same time. In my humble opinion, there is a clear conflict of interest and that made me want to deep dive into Fields. To start, you must understand that the PGA, The Link, and Fields are 3 separate world-class developments, but one would not have happened without the other. Hunt is who identified and purchased the 2544 acres of land on the DNT. Hunt has partnered with Stillwater Capital to do the PGA and The Link. Hunt then announced its partnership with Fehmi Karahan (Legacy West Developer) to do the Fields West development. Fields website states it will be home to restaurants, businesses, ten thousand homes, schools, parks, and open spaces. It will also be home to the PGA headquarters and the University of North Texas.
Now we have identified two players in the Fields project: Hunt Realty Investments and Fehmi Karahan. The investors are Chief Partners and CrossTie Capital, and the development team is led by KDC Architects. Home builders will include Darling / Taylor Morrison, Britton / Perry, Highland Homes, Olivia Clarke, Shaddock Homes, Toll Brothers, and several more custom home builders. Mario Sinecola & Sons will probably be doing the excavating and FCS Trucking will also be involved. In a nutshell, there are a lot of players in the overall project. So how does Jeff Cheney fit into this?
Let’s follow the social media trail. On October 13, 2022, the Cheney Group announced The Preserve at PGA was teeing off. It went on to read the Cheney Group would be the Fields Experts. Just days later October 16th the Cheney Group released a video with Jeff Cheney presenting all things PGA. You can check it out on the Cheney Group YouTube Channel. On October 17th Jeff Cheney led Monument Realty’s Roadmap 2023 event where they shared tips and tricks with top agents. The same day on social media the Cheney Group released a video of the Championship Holes 14 & 15 the Preserve lots overlooking them. On October 19th they announced they just got their hands on the first set of floor plans for Brookside South at PGA and they had several more upcoming builder meetings planned and could not wait to fill us in! Fast forward to Nov 2nd Capital Title hosted a knowledge session for Realtors in North Texas at Stonebriar Country Club led by Jeff Cheney. On Nov 8th they meet with architects involved at The Preserve to learn about the level of standards they would be bringing to the Preserve. We could keep going but I think you get the idea!
Just following the social media trail, we are left with several questions. Does the Cheney Group have an exclusive to the lots? If so, is that because they are a top-producing team or because Cheney is mayor, and when was the deal made? The Monument Realty Roadmap Show was that for Monument agents only or were other agents outside the brokerage invited? How did other brokerages in DFW learn about the PGA’s future homesites? Did other brokerages get to have exclusive sit-downs with the architects? Can any agent go out to the 14th and 15th holes and take photos of The Preserve homesites overlooking the course? Did other brokers and agents get their hands on the floor plans the same day as the Cheney Group or after? The Capital Title knowledge session that was held for local realtors, was the Fields representatives, home builders, and developers there, or was this led by Mayor Jeff Cheney or Jeff Cheney of the Cheney Group? It makes me curious, why are other agents and brokerages not outraged by the exclusive access Cheney seems to have?
Just the other day I visited my favorite coffee shop and two agents sitting next to me were talking in low whispers about how they felt it was a massive conflict of interest that the Cheney Group has an exclusive. I wanted to jump up and say, me too but I didn’t. I just sat quietly with my head tilted back reading the paper and listening to them vent their frustrations. I don’t fully understand if Cheney has an exclusive right to these lots but it is clear that the Cheney Group has a leg up on any other brokerage or realtor when it comes to the PGA which is one of the most notable developments to hit North Texas. If the Cheney Group does have an exclusive and he is profiting from his position and connections as Mayor then an argument could be made there is a serious conflict of interest and Mr. Cheney should recuse himself from all talks, votes, well anything that has to do with Fields West.
Someone told me once “It would be better for us to have some doubts in an honest pursuit of truth than it would be for us to be certain about something that was not true.” So in my search for transparency, and the need to know the truth, I decided to file a PIR to obtain more information. That is where I found some shady shit!
It started like any other January day residents across Frisco woke up and started getting ready to take on a new day. I stepped out of the shower and could hear the morning newscaster on the television giving the traffic report followed by the weather. The deep voice said, prepare for the warmest January day since 2009 because today we should hit a high of 83 degrees. Texans generally joke about how we hit all four seasons in one day. Winter starts at 6 am, spring starts at 10 am, summer is at 2 pm and fall starts around 5:30 pm.
Midmorning sitting at my desk I get a notification that Visit Frisco has gone live on their Facebook page so of course I tune in to see what is going on. Standing behind a podium is Mayor Jeff Cheney announcing all the officials and guests in attendance. He then goes on to quote Dr. Seuss and says “One Fish, Two Fish, Frisco has a new wish and that is to welcome Universal Studios and Universal Kids to Frisco, Texas.” I was thinking about why would we want a theme park, where would it go, and how did this development come about. Mark Woodbury, Chairman & CEO of Universal Parks & Resorts, share a rendering of a bright and colorful theme park geared towards young children with a hotel featuring 300 rooms. Page Thompson, President of New Ventures for Universal announced they just purchased land 97 acres east of the DNT and north of Panther Creek Parkway in the Fields development. Mayor Jeff Cheney takes his position back at the podium to thank Fehmi Karahan of Fields and Karahan Properties as well as Hunt Real Estate who brought PGA here and is now bringing Universal Theme Parks.
In my head, I was thinking how did this dynasty development come about? The response on social media was swift and it soon became clear not all Frisconians were pleased about the park’s announcement. Weeks went by and I passively watched everything play out online and at city meetings. The key message being communicated by our mayor was how excited everyone was to welcome universal, and how the project had been fully vetted by the city and council. The key message from residents, they didn’t want the park. I was just intrigued by how much our Mayor was trying to sell the project to residents and news channels, and how he advocated relentlessly for the development.
Then one night while sitting in my recliner, I remembered back in October a post that I had seen from The Cheney Group that said his agents have been working on something very special for over a year now. They were excited to announce The Preserve at PGA is about to tee off and if someone was interested in building their own custom home reach out to them asap. He talked about early interest being historic levels and how they were the Fields Experts. My golf buddy in real estate around that same time was pretty upset telling me that The Cheney Group had snagged the exclusive to list The Preserve homesites. He even showed me an alluring glossy mailer that he had received in the mail from The Cheney Group. The front talked about the residential communities of PGA, living at Fields with renderings of the development. It had an attractive picture of The Cheney Group in front of the Fields boxes we see along the feeder road of the DNT. The back talked about Fields West, from the visionary behind Legacy West referring to Fehmi Karahan and new communities The Preserve and Brookside.
Growing up I always wanted to be like Perry Mason, Matlock, or Remington Steele probably because of my curious nature. It is that curious nature that leads me to ask how can The Cheney Group be the exclusive Fields Experts and now Jeff Cheney, acting as Mayor is advocating for Universal? Fehmi spoke twice at the February 7th, Special Meeting of the P&Z Commission and City Council meeting on behalf of Universal, so it is clear he has a personal interest in seeing Universal go through as it will be a part of the overall Fields project. I am no legal eagle, but I would think that if The Cheney Group is in any way financially benefiting from representing The Preserve for Fehmi Karahan which is part of the Fields Development then Jeff Cheney should recuse himself from any development talk regarding Fields and Universal as it is part of the same overall project.
My curiosity had me wondering, is that why when several residents showed up to a city council meeting to speak at citizens input he responded to each of them like he was selling the features and benefits of the Universal theme park. Am I the only one who feels like the mayor is trying to sell this project so hard to the public? Am I the only one with these questions or think they may be a reason to be concerned? Am I the only one who thinks something feels shady about it? It goes back to that little word transparency, and the perception or appearance of a conflict of interest.
Jeff Cheney is a man with a diverse and successful career path. Back in 1998, he was a Senior Associate for Price Waterhouse Coopers. In 2000 he became the Director of Portfolio Operations for Highland Capital Management. Two years later, he joined Keller Williams forming The Cheney Group. Then in 2007, he became a councilman for The City of Frisco and served until 2016. During that time, around 2014 to 2015 he also became the President of Earth 911.
As his council term came to an end, Cheney decided to run for Mayor of Frisco, which paid off as soon as he won the election. In May of 2017, he officially became Mayor Jeff Cheney for The City of Frisco. Then in November of 2017, The Cheney Group joined The Associates, owned by Robert Elliott. In 2021, The Cheney Group moved one more time to join Monument Realty Group.
You thought we were done? Cheney also served as the owner of Frisco-Online.com from 2004 to 2017. In 2017, Frisco Online merged into Lifestyle Frisco that Cheney maintains a partnership. Today, Lifestyle Frisco touts on their website they are the guide for “What to Do, Where to Go, and Who to KNOW” around Frisco! In 2021, Jeff Cheney told David Arkin with CheckoutDFW.com that shortly after his second child was born he unloaded their life savings to buy FriscoOnline.com, and looking back, what a smart investment, it was. He went on to say that FriscoOnline.com was hitting 4-5 million page views a month which played a big part in his real estate business. Finally, Jeff is known to love Yoga and his family owns Hot Body Yoga in Frisco.
Some might say when he took office in May of 2017 that Frisco became Cheneyville and a sanctuary for wealthy people! He is known to love urban planning and development and has been quoted many times that he loved how Frisco was a blank slate. Cheney takes great pride in that he helped plan out the remaining space in The City of Frisco. One key thing he wanted to pass was an ordinance that future developments have a certain percentage of open space.
Unfortunately, Cheney has advocated for growth and big named developments all while ignoring residents’ calls to slow down! Truth is, some of these developments are great for the city and its residents, and then some leave people to question, why did Mayor Cheney and the City Council approve that?
In the last few years, Frisco has been recognized as the fastest-growing city in America, and the best place to live by Money Magazine. Without a doubt, Jeff Cheney has played a big role in Frisco! The only question now is, did Cheney do all this for the residents, or did he do it for himself?
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