Irving’s city council has approved $30 million in incentives to overhaul its six-year-old Toyota Music Factory entertainment complex.
The money will be used to make improvements to the central plaza and remodel performance areas and storefronts in the retail, restaurant and entertainment center in Las Colinas.
The funds will reimburse Music Factory operator Brookfield Asset Management for making the upgrades to the mixed-use development, which opened in 2018 between State Highway 114 and Las Colinas Boulevard.
“The money that the city would use to reimburse the developer for these improvements would come from revenue that is generated within the Music Factory property,” assistant city manager Philip Sanders told the city council Thursday night. “We have worked with them as they have evaluated the property in order to make it even more competitive in the market, a more attractive place for our visitors and residents.”
Built at an original cost of $180 million, the Music Factory complex has never operated with the success originally anticipated and has suffered from vacancies.
Last year, the Music Factory hosted 167 live performances, down from 254 events in 2022, according to the city.
The Music Factory includes a 4,000-seat indoor concert hall, an 8,000-seat outdoor amphitheater, 206,756 square feet of retail and restaurant space and a 100,000-square-foot office building. There’s also a movie theater.
A unit of New York-based Brookfield last summer took over operation of the city-owned property from the original developers.
“They will front the $30 million up front to do the repairs and to redo the infrastructure that they think we need to do so it can be more competitive,” Irving mayor Rick Stopfer said. “They have already signed several new tenants.”
Stopfer said it will likely take 30 years for Brookfield to recoup its investment from revenue generated by the Music Factory. Last year, the mixed-use complex generated just more than $1 million in sales taxes.
The council voted unanimously to provide Brookfield with the new funding. And it also okayed new signage for the project facing State Highway 114.
“It is a lot of money, but it will come back to the city because the city will own it,” council member Brad LaMorgese said. “I think it’s an important piece for Irving, and we ought to try and support it.”
Brookfield officials were quick to thank Irving’s council for the support.
“Their approval today represents an important first step to advance our vision to take the Toyota Music Factory to new levels,” Brookfield senior vice president Chase Martin said in a statement. “Brookfield has a proven track record of reimaging community destinations, and we are honored to be the trusted partner to move this project forward.”
One citizen who spoke to the council was against the idea of forking over more funds for the Music Factory.
“That’s a lot of money to spend on a structure that’s six years old in hopes of getting more people to come,” Emma Petty told the council.
Irving built the Music Factory in an effort to bring more business to the surrounding Las Colinas Urban Center. It’s adjacent to Irving’s convention center and the Westin hotel.
Since it opened, other large developments have debuted nearby.
Christus Health late last year opened its 15-story headquarters tower to house almost 2,000 workers just south of the Music Factory on Las Colinas Boulevard. Banking giant Wells Fargo is building its half-billion-dollar Irving office campus across the street from the Music Factory.
“Toyota Music Factory is a treasured asset in our community and our region, and it plays a significant role in our city’s economic development by supporting the value proposition we offer companies interested in calling Irving-Las Colinas home,” Beth Bowman, president and CEO of the Greater Irving-Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce and Irving Economic Development Partnership said in a statement.
