Arlington signs on for $810M expansion of Entertainment District

Loew's Arlington hotel rendering

On Tuesday evening, the Arlington City Council entered into a public-private partnership over a 30-year period for an $810 million expansion of its Entertainment District.

The expansion will include a $550 million, 888-room Loews Arlington Hotel with 1,500 parking spaces, a new Arlington Convention Center, a mixed-use residential building with 280 units and 100,000 square feet of retail, entertainment and Spark coworking and incubator space, a planned 200,000-square foot corporate office headquarters and a public garage with 1,900 parking spaces.

The new Arlington Convention Center will offer 216,000 square feet of meeting and outdoor function space.

The expansion is a continuation of the public-private partnership between the City of Arlington, the Texas Rangers, Loews Hotels & Co, a wholly owned subsidiary of Loews Corporation (NYSE: L), and The Cordish Companies. According to the city, the project will further strengthen Arlington’s convention and tourism opportunities and create new revenue, housing and jobs for the community.

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The expansion would bring these partners’ total investment in Arlington, which includes the new Texas Live! and Live! by Loews – Arlington Hotel, to more than $1 billion.

“It’s another great day in Arlington, as we continue to build on the economic momentum in our world-class Entertainment District,” said Arlington Mayor Jeff Williams. “When Loews Hotels & Co, The Cordish Companies, the Texas Rangers and the City of Arlington all come together on a project, there’s no limit to the dreams we can realize here in The American Dream City. This project and the recent National Medal of Honor Museum will add significantly to the city’s sales tax revenue, allow us to continue to keep our taxes among the lowest in the area and provide the quality services our residents have come to expect with minimal public investment.”

This expansion is the next phase of a greater $4 billion vision by the City of Arlington, Texas Rangers, The Cordish Companies and Loews Hotels & Co that began with the $250 million Texas Live!, which opened August 2018, and Live! by Loews Hotel which opened in August 2019. Together, along with the Rangers’ new Globe Life Field, the total investment of new development by the partnership totals over $2.25 billion. The new mixed-use project will be a major economic engine to the area and is expected to generate approximately $1.8 billion in economic benefits to Arlington and Tarrant County,, according to a news release from the city.

“As an owner and operator, Loews Hotels has the advantage of deciding when and where we build hotels. For us to invest significant capital in the new $550 million Loews Arlington Hotel, demonstrates our belief in the great city of Arlington, Texas,” said Jonathan Tisch, chairman & CEO, Loews Hotels & Co. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with the City, The Texas Rangers and The Cordish Companies, and are confident that with the addition of Loews Arlington, the destination will receive national prominence and recognition for hotels and lodging as AT&T Stadium and Globe Life Field did for sports and entertainment.”

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“The Texas Rangers are proud to call Arlington our home as the city and its leaders continue to create one of the nation’s premier sports and entertainment destinations,” said Texas Rangers Co-Chairman and Managing Partner Ray Davis. “We want to thank our great partners, Loews Hotels & Co and The Cordish Companies for sharing our vision for the Arlington Entertainment District. With its opening next March, Globe Life Field will be the finest ballpark in Major League Baseball, and the development projects announced this evening are another very exciting addition to the area.”

“It is an honor for The Cordish Companies to continue our partnership with the City of Arlington, the Texas Rangers and Loews Hotels & Co to deliver a transformative project for Arlington,” said Blake Cordish, principal of The Cordish Companies. “Loews is one of the preeminent hoteliers in North America and a leader in the convention and meetings industry. The expansion of Arlington’s Entertainment District, anchored by the new Loews Arlington Hotel and Arlington Convention Center, will create a vibrant mixed-use development and will cement Arlington as one of the leading premier sports, entertainment, culture, hospitality and tourism destinations in the country.”

Other details:

Loews Hotels & Co will bring a second hotel to Arlington. The $550 million Loews Arlington Hotel will be located across from Live! by Loews – Arlington, TX, on the current Texas Rangers’ Lot J parking lot. This new addition marks the largest investment the company has made to date, outside of Orlando, Florida, where Loews operates and owns (50%) soon-to-be eight hotels as a joint venture with Comcast NBC Universal. Loews Arlington will feature 888 guestrooms, 216,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor function space, 1,500-space parking garage, two restaurants with outdoor terraces, two bars, a grab-and-go coffee shop, 8,000-square-foot pool with 18 cabanas, Loews Loves Families Kids Club, fitness center and a spa with six treatment rooms. Loews Hotels & Co has been a leader in the hotel industry for more than 70 years, offering distinctive experiences to its guests, for business, group, leisure and family travelers.

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The new Arlington Convention Center will be connected to Loews Arlington Hotel. This venue will allow Loews to feature 150,000 square feet of interior meeting space, with an additional 66,000 square feet of exterior space for outdoor events and functions. The new Arlington Convention Center and Live! by Loews – Arlington, which will be connected via a skybridge, will offer a combined 1,188 guestrooms and 251,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting and event space. This substantial addition will further bolster Arlington’s reputation nationally as a destination for meetings, conventions, trade shows and other events, all of which bring millions of visitors to North Texas annually.

Corporate Office Headquarters The City of Arlington, the Texas Rangers and The Cordish Companies announced their vision for a 200,000-square-foot corporate headquarters building to include a Class A office tower in the Arlington Entertainment District.

Mixed-Use Residential Building Located next to Texas Live! and the soon-to-open Globe Life Field, a mixed-use residential building will create one of the most unique lifestyle experiences in the country. The 280-unit building, which will overlook the Texas Rangers North Plaza, will offer residents an urban lifestyle in the heart of Arlington’s Entertainment District. Leveraging The Cordish Companies’ expertise in hospitality and entertainment, residents will enjoy one-of-a-kind amenities and services on par with the finest upscale residences in the United States. Additionally, the building will feature new retail space and a new public garage with 1,900 parking spaces.

Retail, Entertainment and Small Business Coworking/Incubator Space The expansion of the Entertainment District will also include 100,000 square feet of firstclass retail and entertainment space, as well as a small business coworking and incubator space – Spark. Spark will support the growing Arlington and North Texas entrepreneurial community, placing members within close proximity to hundreds of successful businesses, dining and hotel options, and entertainment.

Spark launched its initial venue in the heart of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor in 2016, undergoing four expansions in its first four years. Today, Spark Baltimore supports more than 165 companies and 470 individual members. Representing a diverse community of entrepreneurial industries, Spark Baltimore has been lauded by city and state officials as being an important asset to Baltimore’s Central Business District and an entrepreneurial hub for the city of Baltimore and the state of Maryland. Spark will open in Arlington with the same commitment to become an integral part of the entrepreneurial ecosystem of the city and region, providing first-class amenities to its members.

The new project is expected to create an additional 3,000+ jobs and generate $78 million for Arlington ISD, $15 million for Tarrant County College and $30 million for Tarrant County and the hospital district over 30 years.

Construction will commence in the first quarter of 2020 beginning with the first 1,500space parking garage on the west side of Lot J.