Plano Hits Pause On Planned Mixed-Use Redevelopment Of Former JCPenney Headquarters Site
The site of JCPenney’s former corporate headquarters in Plano could become a new mixed-use development featuring multifamily housing, office space, hotels and retail.
But it will have to get past city officials first, and history suggests that has been a tall order for previous owners of the property.
Austin-based developer Capital Commercial Investments bought the property in 2021 after JCPenney declared bankruptcy the previous year and moved out of the office space. CCI is seeking city approval to add four office buildings, apartments and townhomes to the site’s existing office building and two parking garages, The Dallas Morning News reported.
The more than 97-acre development known as The Park at Legacy would include nearly 1.2M SF of office space, 750 apartments, 425 hotel rooms, 20K SF of retail and a three-story townhome complex near the single-family housing that currently sits east of the site.
But the developer will have to wait until the Plano Planning & Zoning Commission’s Oct. 21 meeting after the matter was tabled by the commission last month. If approved by the commission, the proposal would then go before Plano City Council.
CCI Executive Vice President of Development Andrew Lodeesen told the commission the company is working to make the site more marketable.
“We’re really hopeful for the continued activation of this facility,” Lodeesen said. “Activity breeds activity. We’re confident … that we’re going to get a great deal of activity and continue to backfill some vacancy in the office park.”
Less than a third of the site’s existing 1.8M SF is occupied, per a presentation to the commission. JCPenney returned to the site in 2023 and currently occupies around 300K SF of the existing building.
This isn’t the first time a rezoning has been requested to turn this property into a mixed-use development.
City documents show the previous owner proposed rezoning three times but was denied or withdrew the request each time. The campus was previously owned by Dreien Opportunity Partners CEO Sam Ware and his affiliated firm, Silo Harvesting Partners. Lender Beal Bank foreclosed on the property in November 2020.
“The redevelopment of large corporate campuses is a complex process that requires time and adaptability to be executed successfully,” Lodessen told Bisnow via email. “We are grateful for the ongoing support and collaboration of the Plano city staff, who have been highly accommodating over the past few years.”
The addition of apartments would make the site competitive with existing mixed-use developments along the Dallas North Tollway, such as Legacy West in Plano and The Star and Hall Park in Frisco, Lodeesen added.
Following the success of the luxury-focused Legacy West and Dallas Cowboys-centric The Star, developers have followed new residents and their wallets to the northern suburbs with a bevy of mixed-use developments.
As an example of the firm’s commitment to Plano, Lodeesen said CCI has invested several million dollars to restore the hotel pad site for the planned 217-key Miyako Hotel at the Campus at Legacy West after it was left incomplete by the former owner of the JCPenney headquarters site.
That hotel is expected to accommodate Japanese employees visiting Toyota's North American headquarters in the city and serve as an experiential destination for American guests.
