A Frisco project that will one day feature offices, restaurants and retail, nearly 2,000 apartments, 1,200 hotel rooms and more, all encircling a 45-acre park, will move ahead.
Wilks Development, through its subsidiary Frisco North Development LLC, has teamed up with Frisco Economic Development Corp. on an agreement that will propel the Firefly Park project toward its first phase of construction.
Located at the intersection of U.S. Highway 380 and the Dallas North Tollway along PGA Parkway, Wilks owns 159 acres of the 242-acre master-planned project. Frisco EDC owns 59 acres.
“When Wilks Development purchased this land back in 2015, its plans were modest,” said Frisco Mayor Jeff Cheney. “Wilks upped its game when the PGA of America announced it was coming to Frisco. It’s exciting to see the vision evolve into a world-class development. Firefly Park will be one of the premier destinations in North Texas.”
The first phase entails the development of a 200-room Dream Hotel, 650,000 square feet of Class A office space, dining and shopping, and the park.
Frisco EDC will work with the developer on streets, roads, water lines, drainage, utilities and other public infrastructure needs. Frisco’s Mahard Way will be built out to a four-lane boulevard, connecting PGA Parkway and U.S. 380, in addition to a bridge crossing over a lake along Shearwater Boulevard.
“Firefly Park is part of the ‘PGA halo effect’ accelerating development in north Frisco,” said Frisco EDC president Jason Ford. “The infrastructure partnership creates ready-to-build sites to help attract major headquarters to Frisco. There is a high demand for more walkable, mixed-use environments with a blend of premier corporate and lifestyle facilities — Firefly Park will offer exactly that. The immersive art walkway will make it unique from every other mixed-use development in North Texas.”
All in, Firefly Park is set to span 3 million square feet of Class A office space, 400,000 square feet of retail and entertainment, 1,200 hotel rooms, 230 townhomes and 1,970 apartments.
The infrastructure and horizontal work on Firefly Park will take about a year to complete, with another 18 to 24 months projected for the vertical construction of Phase 1.
Just south of the Firefly Park site is the $10 billion Fields development, which includes the forthcoming Universal Destinations & Experiences theme park.
