IRVING, Texas — Improvements to the barely 6-year-old Toyota Music Factory in Irving received unanimous approval by the Irving City Council on Thursday, with the caveat that Irving residents, per se, will not be footing an estimated $31 million bill.
Since ZZ Top officially opened the Toyota Music Factory in September of 2017, the venue has, by all accounts, been a financial success. The City of Irving owns the land and the buildings with its tenants generating more than a million dollars in sales tax revenue a year.
So why did the Irving City Council vote Thursday, to ask for $30 million more?
"That's a lot of money to spend on a structure that's six years old," one resident complained when the Irving City Council asked for public comment prior to their vote. But the unanimous vote was explained this way.
"Like anything, we're in a competitive environment and we're always looking for ways and opportunities to improve," assistant city manager Philip Sanders told WFAA.
Sanders, as he explained Thursday night to the audience at City Hall, says Brookfield Asset Management is the new property manager. And, in conversations with city planners, agreed that improvements are needed to the Toyota Music Factory property. Improvements that Brookfield will pay for upfront and be reimbursed by the City of Irving from sales taxes generated by people who visit the music and food venues here, not by any additional taxes on the residents of Irving.
"Brookfield Properties is fronting the money. It is a city-owned facility. And so as they incur expenses we will reimburse Brookfield from revenues generated from the property itself," Sanders said.
The City of Irving says the initial work will include an estimated $6.3 million in improvements to the plaza and outdoor stage, new signage and architectural graphics, and enhancement to the storefronts of several tenant spaces.
The proposal also allows Brookfield to seek reimbursement for up to $25 million for the cost of improvements to key tenant lease spaces.
"To redo the plaza, make some improvements to some of the lease spaces, and just improve the overall customer experience of the facility," said Sanders.
The City of Irving says the Toyota Music Factory hosted 167 live performances last year alone. City planners are betting now that the next 30 years, with a mechanism for continuous improvements, will be financial music to their ears too.
"Irving's Toyota Music Factory is about to usher in a new era of entertainment for North Texas," said Mayor Rick Stopfer. "Already a resounding success with an award-winning amphitheater, world-class entertainment, and international cuisine, the planned redevelopment of the plaza and outdoor areas will reinvigorate the entire space, bringing an even more spectacular and dynamic visitor experience."