Imagine it is the early 80’s and your family is about to embark on their summer vacation. The day before you leave your dad is packing up the sports wagon, aka Wagon Queen Family Truckster, trying to figure out how each suitcase needed to be positioned on the roof, so nothing got lost along Route 66. You see your parents sitting at the kitchen table looking at the map one last time planning the ultimate route with amazing pit stops and fun things to do. Morning comes and it is time to hit the road. As you pull out of the drive all you can think about it is your destination…Walley World. Okay yes I am talking about Clark Griswold and the hit movie National Lampoon’s Vacation. It is a classic, timeless, and hilarious comedy and in my opinion one of the best movies of all time. Well soon families with small kids across the nation will pack up for that summer trip right here to Frisco, Texas. If you are wondering why then you have been living under a rock or in a cave for way too long. Universal Studios will be the Walley World of Frisco!
In January 2023 when residents learned Universal would be coming to town, they did not receive the Griswold welcome by locals. Instead, residents had a lot of questions and concerns about the project and its impact on the city. The biggest question still to this day is when did the city first hear about Universals interest in Frisco for this project? The answer is not as easy as one may think, and it varies depending on who you ask. In a council meeting Mayor Cheney said they first learned about the project at the end of August or September 2022. Then in an interview with local reporter Brett Shipp back in late January, Mayor Cheney said council had been thoroughly vetting the project the last 4 to 5 months. When announced in January several council members and P&Z board members admitted to not having the so-called traffic study, economic impact study, or crime study. In fact, several admit to having very few details on the project other than the colorful rendering seen by the world.
That is where we thought the story would end until one day I checked our email and there was a letter with a copy of two PIR’s by two different residents and I will admit I was a little verklempt and excited. The requests were for all communications regarding P117 / Universal, travel plans and expenses and more. Buried in one of the requests we found a picture of a timeline titled “Genesis of Universal Project” and after reading it we were very confused and perplexed.
Hold up! If the timeline provided by the city is correct then we have a lot of questions. It does not match the verbal statements/timelines given by the mayor and some council members and it does not match the emails received in the PIR. Who wrote the timeline? Who put the timeline in the PIR? Why are there no emails supporting this time frame? Are we to believe not one email went back and forth from May to the end of August regarding this big project that was in discussion?
According to this timeline the city officials supposedly had 3 meetings in June. The first was June 7, the second June 14, and the third June 21, 2022. However, when you get to July 13 it notes the June board meeting was canceled so the EDC board did not get a briefing until July. Let’s pretend we have a multiple-choice test question: Which June meeting was canceled? A) June 7, B) June 14, C) June 21, D) All of them or E) None of them. May, June and July? That is very different than September or October, which were the city officials statements given at city council meetings and meet and greets. I find it hard to believe my wife and I are the only ones asking why the timeline keeps changing. Why do I feel like we are being lied to and if they are lying, why? If the city council was briefed on a regular monthly basis since July 2022 then why is it when confronted after the big grand announcement most of the city officials and members of P&Z had little to no information about the project? When asked most looked like “deer in the headlights” and could not try to exit the conversation fast enough. What they did have were the same talking points that we later learned were lies and part of a bait-and-switch to what was really in the development agreement.
Confused we decided to go through the emails sent to us and we found the first email dated 8/22/2022 at 1:57 PM from Laura Cuzman (Sr. Admin Asst at the Frisco EDC) to Holly McCall and Sharon Perry (City Mgr. Admin Asst) is regarding a “High Priority Meeting.” It goes on to say Jason Ford (President of the Frisco EDC) would like to coordinate an “important meeting” with a “prospect” at the Frisco EDC office to be held 8/31/2022. It notes that city staff should include Wes Pierson, Ben Brezina and John Lettellier. Laura asks Holly to confirm if Mayor Cheney and/or Angelia Pelham from the council could attend and what 2-hour window would work so they could coordinate a meeting. Immediately Sharon Perry responds and asks, “Is this for Project US?” If it is Wes can be available all day. Laura responds that she believes so but will confirm with Jason Ford. Then an email is sent from Jason Ford to Ben Brazina (Asst. City Manager) and he states Cheney can be available, Angelia is on vacation and then he asks if Ben and Wes have suggestions of other council member(s) they should include. He specifically says, “ Mayor Pro Tem perhaps as part of protocol?” Then Jason asks Ben to make a call to Richard the next day to discuss any potential issues with the other member we discussed with related experience.
In my best Beyoncé I want to scream, ring the alarm, ring the alarm! Why would you not invite all the council members? Why exclude any of them from important conversations regarding such a big project? Is this typically how the city conducts business? What member could be a potential issue due to their related experience?
In the next series of emails that started on August 29, Emily Pollard (Marketing & Special Events – Frisco EDC) sends an email to Jason Ford and Leigh Lyons with a draft of the P117 Site Visit Presentation for August 31. Then Jason Ford sends an email to Wes Pierson, Ben Brezina and a cc to Marla Row (Visit Frisco) where he shares the first working draft of pitch decks for Wednesday’s meeting. That evening, Ben Brezina responded back they should highlight the month of May 2023 and talk about how many people are coming to Frisco with the PGA Frisco opening, Dallas Cowboys Training Camp Kick Off Party, ACM Music Awards and KitchenAid PGA Senior Championship. His point “inertia is moving…time for Project US to join us as our Partner. The next morning Marla Row sent 2 emails, the first talked about what statistics they should use for economic impact and the second email adds they should reference the meeting they had with all the venues to discuss them activating events around the ACM which further shows partnership beyond developments. Ben Brezina replies he likes that angle, it’s not just deal making, site development, construction, and grand opening but a partnership that extends far beyond the doors opening. Later that day Jason Ford sends out a revised “pitch deck” and working draft agenda for the August 31, 2023 meeting, along with a note to Jeff Cheney, Brian Livingston, Tammy Meinershagen, Wes Pierson, Ben Brezina, Marlo Roe, and John Lettellier with the subject line: Please sign NDA ASAP for meeting tomorrow. He goes on to say the meeting will be at the Frisco EDC office and the client has asked every participant to sign an NDA, which was drafted by Richard Abernathy.
Pictures of the P-117 Meeting Agenda show a list of participants and notes topics from prior meetings which may be revisited or carried over (site specific).
Discussion on workforce (i.e., how far would employees need to travel in from): A primary benefit mentioned over and over promoting this project was the jobs it will create for Frisco residents. If this was about local jobs then why are we talking about how far employees will have to travel.
Would the community be receptive to this project / land use?If not, why? Let’s just do a quick look at the City of Frisco’s social media Facebook page. On average daily posts can generate anywhere from 1 to 50 comments and maybe 3 to 4 shares. When you see posts with 100, 500, 1000 comments you can bet it is something citizens are paying attention to. Just look at the City’s Facebook page when it comes to Universal posts. On 1/11/23 the first post “The Announcement” had 1.9k comments and 4.8k shares and was one of the highest responded to posts on the city’s page in two years. It is important to note that most of the comments were against the project. Then a second post on 1/11/23 had 161 comments and 42 shares, 1/13/23 third post had 50 comments and 73 shares and the fourth post on 1/16/23 had 30 comments and 60 shares. February was not much different, on 2/10/23 the fifth post had 213 comments and 11 shares, and the final post announcing it had been approved on 3/7/23 had 349 comments and 76 shares (the majority saying it was a big mistake to approve it).
What sort of upgrades would be needed to facilitate the park (infrastructure)? I would be curious what the discussion was they had on this one.
What are the public approval hurdles we’d need to prepare for? Under what circumstances? They obviously were clueless to the opposition this project would face because they were not ready for the public hurdles that came after the announcement.
How might State/Local Economic Development help us (expedite permitting, political help, incentives, etc.)? I bet they didn’t expect the citizen opposition to incentives.
How hard is it to get a definitive answer to one simple question…When did the city first learn about Universal? Two months ago, at the council meeting, which was packed with residents, Fehmi Karahan spoke and said he was approached 10 months ago which means that would have been April 2022.
Depending on the timeline you believe, are we supposed to buy that for two months, Fehmi didn’t tell the city about the inquiry from Universal? If the city first started discussing this in May or even August 2022, and the project was thoroughly vetted as Mayor Cheney said, then why were some citizens told in January 2023 by council members and P&Z staff members that they really didn’t know too many details about the project? Why had the council or P&Z members not seen a crime study, traffic study, economic impact study from May/August 2022 to January 2023? Mayor Cheney besides using resident tax dollars (in excess of $10,000+) for a trip to vet Universal Orlando in person, what else was vetted?
At the climax of the Griswold’s Road Trip to Walley World in National Lampoons Vacation, everything had gone wrong that could go wrong and Clark’s wife and kids announce they vacation is not worth it and want to just go home. At his wits end, sitting in the sports wagon you can see the whites of Clarks wide eyes and the grinding of his teeth, and his meltdown begins. He launches into a foul-mouthed tirade: “I think you’re all f**ked in the head! […] This is no longer a vacation! It’s a quest! It’s a quest for fun! […] You’ll be whistling ‘Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah’ out of your a**holes!”
We agree with Clark this is a quest but ours is for something so simple called “THE TRUTH.” I was one of those residents in January sitting at home watching the announcement live stream on Facebook and thinking to myself what in the nuclear detonation, I mean tarnation is going on in Frisco. All I could picture was the final scene in National Lampoon’s Vacation when the Griswold’s gleefully race to the entrance of Walley World, “America’s Favorite Family Fun Park,” in slow motion only to find the park is closed for two weeks for repairs and cleaning.
After doing all this research we are left with more questions than answers and we can say the inaccuracies in the timeline are very questionable, glaringly obvious, and truthfully alarming. A smart person once said, “Trust the timeline of yourself.” And with that Walley says, until next time…
Everyone knows the saying, “Behind every successful man is a woman.” I searched for who originated this quote but that wasn’t too easy to find. I guess I should have asked my wife to hunt for it. What I could find is, it seems the expression originated in the early 1900s, implying, of course, that our wives or mothers were the major contributor to most of our success. Some argue that Groucho Marx’ came up with the quote originally. I joke that I prefer Jim Carrey’s quote, “Behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes.” Because, in my case, for every great idea I think I have, it’s really my wife that actually makes the idea come to life.
Now, most of you already know about my concerns about Fehmi Karahan and The Karahan Companies and his dealings in Frisco. They are completely out of control with Mayor Cheney doing his best to keep the train from jumping the tracks. We recently visited The Karahan Companies’ website to study some of his team players wondering if we could connect some dots. Well, I didn’t need my wife’s help on this one.
Sure enough, behind this man, is one great woman, the Company’s General Manager, Lori Decker. It says right there, she “has over 20 years in commercial real estate legal administration, managing client activities at the law firm of Grogan and Brawner, P.C. for 13 years.”
Clang! Clang! Clang! Why should we take notice of this? Well, R.J. Grogan, Jr. and Jeff Brawner have a firm in Dallas, off of Fairmount St., in the same building as GFF Architects who interestingly enough designed Cobb Farm. What a small world. Why we even take notice of these partners is the number of years that they have been donating to the various campaigns of the Frisco City Council. If you need to see more detail on this check out our story Dark Money
But, it doesn’t stop there. You guessed it, they are The Karahan Companies’ counsel too.
If that wasn’t one dot too many already, we continue to read on and learn from Decker’s bio, she previously worked for Abernathy, Roeder, Boyd and Joplin back in 2011. Really? For those that may not know, Richard Abernathy is the City of Frisco’s leading attorney. Well, it must be nice to know people.
Are we saying that Lori Decker is guilty of anything? Not at all! We are actually suggesting that perhaps she is the greatness that is behind all of these successful men. And, if so, she needs to ask for a really big pay raise!
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.”
In the last week we have been sent a treasure trove of information from citizens who are “spilling the tea” and telling us they are tired of the Shady Shit happening all around Frisco. The note with this little tidbit read “my discussion with a builder rep out at The Preserve.” The builder rep talks about how some lots were held back then the rest of the lots were distributed to the builders which is what he has to sell. The builder rep says that the lots on the Golf Ridge and the Hilltop were part of a VIP Program. Upon more questions the builder rep says the VIP program was put on Jeff and the owner of the development. He says some of those lots still remain for example “JEFF HAS A LOT AND THE DEVELOPER THEMSELVES HAVE SOME LOTS.” He goes on to say “kind of like hold this lot for me because my family may want to build on it, maybe hold for a client.” Then the rep notes the development is owned by multiple billionaire families from Dallas and they reserve the right to hold some of those back, so in summation these will be held but they may fall out so stay close to the builders.”
Now we are pretty sure that Mayor Cheney said at every single debate or forum that he owns two pieces of property his personal home and one rental property. That appears to be true by tax records but if they are holding a lot for him isn’t that just semantics and slightly dishonest if he plans to build a personal home there next to his new friends the “BILLIONAIRE” families from Dallas.
Now you may ask who our source and we will just say another Frisco Whistle Blower! Thanks for tea friend! We have sent the rest on to a source in the local tv news since we learned Mitchel at the DMN omitted this from his Cheney story.
Ah! Spring! Spring is the most popular of the four seasons for obvious reasons. It means warmer weather, more hours in the day, and more sunshine. The buds are starting to show, early flowers are beginning to bloom, and the birds are singing a new tune. Spring is a sign of new beginnings, it symbolizes life and how good always triumphs over evil, light over darkness, and life over death. Hibernation has ended! It seems that many people in Frisco are starting to open their eyes, and many are expressing their concerns for the first time over what appears to be some questionable negotiations, developments, and deals throughout the years. The spring awakening always seems to be heightened when an election is on the horizon.
One of the most important aspects of Spring is baseball otherwise referred to as America’s National Pastime. Dr. Gerald Early, a Washington University Professor once said, “There are three things that America will be known for 2000 years from now: the Constitution, jazz music, and baseball. They’re the three most beautifully designed things this culture ever produced.” From an immigrant’s perspective, he is right on point. I remember the first game I went to after moving to America. The sound from the crack of the bat, watching a player slide into home, eating a famous hotdog and relish, and trying to catch the foul balls that came our way. Back in the day if you caught one of those balls you could turn them in for a ten-cent snow cone.
In 1958, Damn Yankees hit the widescreen and it is one of the best musical sport romantic comedy films of its time. It was about a frustrated fan of the hopeless Washington Senators who made a pack with the Devil to help the baseball team win the league pennant. One of the most famous quotes from the movie was “One long ball hitter, that’s what we need! Honest to God, I’d sell my soul for one long ball hitter!” Mmh? Something about this story is hitting close to home. Has someone in Frisco soul their soul to the devil?
Frisco has gone through many changes over the years and with each one a little bit of Frisco’s history seems to be erased. The most obvious was in 2020 when the council considered renaming Rockhill Parkway. Established in 1854, Rock Hill was one of the oldest communities in Collin County and earned its name from the white rock escarpment on which it was built. By 1898, it had a thriving community featuring two schools, four churches a grist mill, a cotton gin, a blacksmith, a drugstore and a grocery store. In 1902, St. Louis and San Francisco railroad bypassed the town and within months most of the businesses, townspeople and churches had relocated. By the mid-1930s, only one African American Baptist church remained. In the 1960s the black school closed and in 1973 the general store was razed leaving Rock Hill and its rich history a distant memory to many. One of the last connections to its history was the street named Rockhill Parkway.
On June 23, 2020, a letter was sent to residents informing them of the road name change and they could respond with any input by July 14, 2020. Renaming Rockhill Parkway to PGA Parkway hit a nerve with many locals who felt like the council was erasing what little history was left of the old town. While doing research we came across an article in the Frisco Enterprise that reported in July 2020 that Assistant City Manager Ben Brezina acknowledged the name change had been a topic of conversation for at least 8 to 10 months. John Lettellier of Development Services for Frisco said moving forward with the proposal happened in just the last 6 to 8 weeks. The article also noted The Heritage Association of Frisco learned about the proposed change by way of a community member who received the notice and, they had never been approached by the city for its historical background. Lastly the most interesting thing in the article was a statement posted on the Facebook page by then councilman Tim Nelson that the item was proposed by a member of the council and consensus was to move forward. Hmmm… I wonder who proposed the name change?
Here is where it gets interesting, in our research we found that many who supported the name change were big businesses with big money and investments in Frisco:
Kyle Wilks – President of Wilks Development (who is behind Firefly Park in Frisco)
Edmund Garahan – CEO of Carbon Companies (building Luxury hotel near PGA)
Triad Frisco Partners (developer of 1310 urban living units, 8 retail buildings, 1 convenience store with gas pumps, 5 parking garages on the southwest corner of Dallas Parkway and Rockhill Parkway)
David Fogel – Manager of Rockhill Legacy (Development at Rockhill & Legacy)
Blake Nelson – Managing Partner (7-Eleven located Rockhill Parkway & Preston)
Darrell Crall – COO of PGA (letter specifically notes they feel strongly there is a long-term value to the PGA branded and the roadway would showcase to millions the PGA Frisco partnership and evolution of Frisco)
Michael Smith – TRT Holdings, Inc. (Part of Omni Stillwater Woods Golf Resort)
Fehmi Karahan – Fields Development (July 17, 2020 letter writes that the city has made an extraordinary financial commitment to the new PGA project and should use all available means to support the success of that project. We strongly urge you and the city council to support the full renaming of Rockhill from Teel to Coit)
Clay Roby – PGA Frisco / Stillwater Capital / The Link (the renaming will further establish Frisco as Sports City USA and appropriately showcase the HQ of the PGA of America)
On Aug 4, 2020, citizens made their way to the podium for Citizens Input to against the change. If you watch the meeting, the mayor remarked that the city of Frisco has always made it a commitment to preserving our history and they even invested 3 to 5 million into the Heritage Museum. He was on city council in 2009 when the road was changed to Rockhill Parkway but he doesn’t remember it and until a few months ago he does not believe many people even knew the story of why it was named Rockhill. He believes Prosper ISD naming the their new high school in Frisco city limits Rock Hill Highschool is a great way to remember the community of Rock Hill. Sadly, he seems to criticize the volunteers at the Heritage Museum for not being accurate on the history and calling the exhibits dated and we need to do better there telling our story. He noted that the PGA and Fields wants to write their own story and they have been good partners to the community. Councilman Woodard suggests renaming Northeast Park to Rock Hill Park he is willing to help get that done.
Today the only reminder that Rock Hill once existed is a historical marker located on the northeast corner of PGA Parkway and Preston Street. The name change passed to PGA Parkway but the question is did it ever have a chance to be kept Rock Hill Parkway? Almost every developer who wrote in support of the name change donated to the campaigns of several sitting on our council. When Fehmi Karahan the King of Fields writes that the city should use all available means to support the success of that project and that he urges the city council to support the full renaming of Rockhill from Teel to Coit the city is going to do just that. Cheney accepted over $30k in January 2020 from the big names on these letterheads and he needs that money to pay back his $99,000 personal loan that he took out for campaigning because as he said at the recent debate he is not an independently wealthy man. Has Bill Woodard followed through on working on the renaming of Northeast Park? Not from what we can see. When Universal was recently in front of the council we heard each of them say that they listen to the residents and this is just another example where big money, big investments, and big companies take priority over residents. Words can come from one’s mouth but actions are what matter. That night a man said the citizens of Frisco are being exploited for money and by its actions that is the way it looks. It’s time to bring change to Frisco in this upcoming election and the others in the future. Maybe those sitting on the lofty hill have become too comfortable. I ask you, has someone perhaps sold his soul? I am reminded of the song “Whatever Lola Wants.” I would have to change the words up a bit and sing,
Verse 1
Whatever Fehmi wants, Fehmi get
Whatever the PGA Frisco wants, the PGA Frisco gets
(Bridge)
I always get what I aim for
And your heart and soul is what I came for
Verse 2
Whatever Cheney wants, Cheney gets
Whatever the developers who come here want, the developers gets
There are two things that interest me: the relation of people to each other, and the relation of people to land. – Aldo Leopold
Remember that the land value of a piece of property includes both the value of the land itself as well as any improvements that have been made to it or around it, one could assume land around The Star would dramatically increase in value as the development came together and was completed. Ready for the kicker, would it surprise you that the city sold the piece of land in question which is estimated to be worth $2.7 million to Blue Star Land Phase III for the sale price of$597,912.00 plus the city’s carrying cost of interest over the years? At the time of the sale in 2019 it was all over the news, but did Frisco residents really pay attention? Probably not and truthfully I had no clue until my curious nature got the best of me and I started looking into things last year. Reading this, do you think it sounds like a win? In theory yes, Frisco sold the land which will yield a substantial potential tax revenue.
Stop the time clock, it is time for a replay so you can understand why Frisco residents should care. First, if the city decided to sell that land no matter who bought it and developed it into an office building the city would be taking an asset generating no revenue and turning it into a cash-generating tax site. We would not have lost an opportunity for the potential $190,000,000 in tax revenue.
Second, the city purchased all this land along the tollway years ago with taxpayer money as a future investment. Selling it for the price we paid plus carrying costs seems to dilute the point of the purchase. The Dallas Morning News reported the market value was an estimated $2.7 million and we sold it for $600,000 which means we gave away $2.1 million dollars of taxpayer money. Anyone looking at this with basic common sense would see the land sale plus the potential tax revenue as a blockbuster achievement. Sherlock Holmes might say, “Elementary, my dear Watson that is a win-win for the city and residents.”
On the flip side, if you’re a DFW local then you know Jerry Jones, and his reputation for being a little pompous, arrogant, vain, egocentric, and self-centered. He is not afraid to say what he thinks, show off or even be offensive at times. It is “Jerry’s World”, and we are lucky to be in it and it has been that way for years. He has worked hard, built an empire, and achieved the American Dream and he has every right to act or celebrate that the way he wants. Keeping in mind Jones’s famous ego if the city did a public sale of the 2.4933 acres of land with direct views of Jerry’s empire including the player’s practice fields, do you think Jones would ever let anyone else buy it or develop it? He would do whatever he had to do to protect his STAR! That makes those 2.4933 acres a rare invaluable treasure that is irreplaceable to Jones. Other developers would also see the value of that land and they would come out of the woodwork, and it could potentially create a bidding war for the holy grail tract of land. Can you imagine what it potentially could have sold for?
We are left with so many questions, the first being who the real winner in this deal was. Clearly, it is Blue Star Land. The city is going to say the potential tax revenue outweighs the loss of profit on the land sale but as a taxpayer, I disagree. I see the Superbowl moment for Frisco residents being the profit of the land sale and still achieving the potential tax revenue.
Mayor Jeff Cheney has said multiple times over the years that the Dallas Cowboys moving to Frisco would create a “halo effect” for our local economy. That means it would form a positive cognitive bias that would increase the city’s presence, brand, and attributes making it attractive to other developers and Fortune 500 businesses, so they would want to be and call Frisco home. That leads to my next question, which is logically thinking if we had to recruit businesses by offering oversized incentives before, then what does the “halo effect” do for us now? Does it mean we will not have to dole out large incentives or deals as we had in the past?
Then I thought of marketing, the Dallas Cowboys logo, and the brand is one of the most famous in the world, and companies pay big bucks to do partnership deals with America’s Team. In 1995 Jones had deals with Nike, Pepsi, American Express, and AT&T that were worth more than $60 million. In 2013, AT&T bought the naming rights to the Cowboys Stadium for up to $20 million a year. In 2022, it was reported that the Cowboys grossed $220 million in stadium ads and sponsorship revenue. They also have million-dollar deals with WinStar World Casino, Lincoln Motor Company, Ford, Omni Hotels and Resorts and we could go on and on. So surely in all these deals or incentive packages the city worked out something where we could put the Cowboy’s famous Blue Star on The City of Frisco webpage with a tagline “Home To The Dallas Cowboys World Headquarters” or when you open the Frisco EDC webpage to show off and increase the so-called “halo effect” to future companies looking to relocate to our great city. A quick surf of our sites there are pictures of The Star but none of the famous and iconic Cowboys branding. Nope, nothing, zilch!
What I did find interesting is a 2021 Dallas Morning News article talking about Monument Realty and how they were named the Official Real Estate Company of the Texas Rangers and you guessed it, the Dallas Cowboys. Dak Prescott is listed as its “chief quarterback officer” and The Cheney Group hangs its hat there. We are awe-struck really because we know that had to cost them a pretty penny to obtain those deals. I mean one would assume that based on the millions of dollars other companies have to pay for partnership deals with these sports teams.
Mr. Thakur will be getting my vote!
I came down here in 1988 to interview with TI in Lewisville. While going down 121 every so often I…
there are several massage "parlors" behind LaHacienda that are foreign run..very questionable activities..one parks a junk car on the street…
there are several massage "parlors" behind LaHacienda that are foreign run..very questionable activities..one parks a junk car on the street…
Thank you for the correction.