Fittingly for a state that boasts chili as its official dish, tales of Texas are a spicy stew of bold statements, fighting words and unfettered legend. The ever-expanding Metroplex is no exception.
One story has it that in 1982, former Dallas Cowboys linebacker D.D. Lewis quipped that the hole in the roof of the former Texas Stadium in Irving was there “so that God can watch His team.” And while it’s true that Bonnie & Clyde holed up in Fort Worth, the popular tale of the 1930s oil queen who entered Neiman-Marcus in Dallas barefoot and commanded “Dress me up. Give me the works!” is pure yarn.
Forever reliable, however, are the area’s quintessential group venues, both vintage and new, which tell the Metroplex story past, present and future—and like a good book, are hard to put down.
Mythic Metros
“Dallas doesn’t want to be known as a one-horse town,” reportedly said the designer of the city’s legendary neon Pegasus sign. Comprising two massive, identical horses spaced 14-feet apart, the “Flying Red Horse” became an instant icon when erected atop the 29-story Magnolia Petroleum Building in 1934.
After revolving around its replica derrick there for nearly 60 years, the fully restored sign now stands outside the Omni Dallas convention headquarters hotel. Since 2000, a new Pegasus has rotated above the landmark Magnolia building, which became the 330-room Magnolia Hotel Dallas Downtown in 1997 with meeting space that includes the Pegasus Ballroom.
Nearby, the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza offers a curatorial journey of President John F. Kennedy’s life that ends powerfully at the windows overlooking the scene of his 1963 assassination. Located in the former Texas School Book Depository, the museum offers versatile seventh-floor space (no personal parties) for up to 300 people.
Established in 1907, Neiman-Marcus has evolved alongside Dallas to become one of the world’s best-known luxury retailers. Seating 170 people, the flagship’s sixth-floor Zodiac Restaurant offers private dining space for small groups.
Dallas was home to the first Hilton hotel (see “What’s in a Name?” sidebar, page 52). Another local Hilton landmark, the Statler from 1956, is undergoing a $175 million transformation into the Hilton-flagged Statler Hotel and Residences. Targeting a fall 2016 opening, the property will include 161 hotel rooms and meeting space that includes an update of the 14,000-square-foot grand ballroom where Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley once performed.
Fort Worth offers a living, breathing link to its founding “Cowtown” days at the Stockyards National Historic District. Where cowboys, cattlemen and gunslingers once rollicked, groups can enjoy the twice-daily cattle drive, see championship rodeo, shop for authentic Western wear, and do the two-step at Billy Bob’s, the world’s largest honky-tonk. Plus, there’s the Stockyards Museum and Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame, dining at Lonesome Dove Western Bistro and Cattlemen’s Steak House, and the Bonnie and Clyde Suite at the meetings-capable Stockyards Hotel, where the couple overnighted in 1933.
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The recently announced $175 million development plan for the Stockyards includes mixed-use areas, public “festival districts” and new hotel, meetings and restaurant properties.
Fort Worth Convention Center delegates have a ready oasis at the adjacent Fort Worth Water Gardens. With its striking geometric design from legendary architect Phillip Johnson, this urban park from 1974 appeared in the sci-fi classic Logan’s Run and is available for event rental.
With roots back to Charles Lindbergh, American Airlines has called Fort Worth home since 1979. Set on 30 acres, the American Airlines Training & Conference Center offers 75,000 square feet of IACC-certified space, plus 299 guest rooms and a teambuilding ropes course. Named for aviation pioneer Cyrus Rowlett Smith, president of American Airlines from 1934 to 1968, the C.R. Smith Museum hosts events for five to 500 guests, with a 1940s DC-3 providing a classic backdrop and a theater accommodating 100-plus in first-class airline seats.
With rising demand for enhanced downtown hotel and convention space, future plans include a new 1,000-room convention center hotel (2017); light rail connection to DFW International Airport (2018); a new $450 million, 14,000-seat multipurpose arena and sports facility at the Will Rogers Memorial Center complex (by December 2019); and a major convention center expansion, slated to begin by 2022.
New Chapters
As once sleepy Metroplex 'burbs such as Frisco and Plano experience exponential growth, planners have a brand-new crop of venue choices alongside classic standbys.
In Arlington, the discussion begins with massive AT&T Stadium, architectural wonder, home of the Dallas Cowboys and major events venue, plus 22-plus flexible spaces for groups up to 4,000 people. Tours of “Jerry’s House” (after Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones) include seeing the stadium’s 56 museum-quality contemporary art pieces.
Before Vegas there was Top O’Hill Terrace, the 1920s tearoom that became a den of illegal gambling. Today, part of Arlington Baptist College, guided tours reveal the former casino’s secret tunnels, hidden trapdoors, false walls and two-way mirrors, which attracted celebrities such as Clark Gable and John Wayne before the Texas Rangers finally closed it down.
In 1961, Texas oil man Angus G. Wynne, Jr. opened his Six Flags Over Texas amusement park with six areas themed after the flags that have flown over Texas: Spain, Mexico, France, Texas, the Confederacy and the U.S. Featuring 11 themed areas today, the park is available for group buyouts and events large and small.
Settled in the 1850s and incorporated in 1914, Irving has figured prominently in the growth of the Metroplex through the decades, with claims to fame including Texas Stadium (1971) and DFW International Airport (1974). Opened in 1973, the master-planned community of Las Colinas today anchors one of the nation’s major corporate centers, with multiple Fortune 500 and Fortune 1000 enterprises among its 8,500-plus local and multinational companies.
Complementing group-capable heritage draws such as the National Scouting Museum and new Texas Musicians Museum, the new $165 million Irving Music Factory complex is slated for a spring 2017 opening. Adjacent to the Irving Convention Center at Las Colinas, the venue will offer 250,000 square feet of entertainment, retail and restaurant space, including an 8,000-seat concert venue and 50,000-square-foot outdoor event plaza.
In 2000, Frisco had a census count of 33,714 people. Today, the population is around 150,000—and projected to reach 350,000 once ongoing development is completed. The sports market continues to be a major driver, as Frisco prepares for this fall’s anticipated opening of “The Star,” the new $115 million Dallas Cowboys World Headquarters & Training Facility. The project, part of $5 billion in developments along the Dallas North Tollway (the “$5 Billion Mile”), includes a 12,000-seat multiuse event center and 301-room Omni hotel.
Frisco is also getting a high-end product. Slated for an early 2018 opening in the $1.6 billion Wade Park development, international luxury brand Langham Hotels & Resorts is introducing its first Texas property, a sleek 35-story tower with 250 rooms on 25 hotel floors with 25,000 square feet of meeting space, a rooftop pool deck and an events lawn.
Also surging is Plano. With nearby Southfork Ranch serving as a perennial group favorite for conferences, themed corporate events and social gatherings, this booming corporate center 20 miles north of Dallas continues to expand its appeal with free parking and Wi-Fi at the 122,500-square-foot Plano Centre, nearly 800 recently added hotel rooms and plentiful retail, dining and entertainment options.
True to its name, historic Grapevine, founded in 1844, is headquarters of Texas’ wine industry, presently the fifth-largest in the nation. Offering wine tours, trails and a rich winery collection, the city’s “vintage” appeal includes the Grapevine Vintage Railroad and dazzling seasonal events that make Grapevine the “Christmas Capital of Texas.”
Just east of Dallas, Mesquite is synonymous with rodeo, with professional cowboys and cowgirls competing at the venerable ProRodeo Series on summer weekends at the event-capable Mesquite Arena.
