Asian Market

Most splendid Asian market center in Dallas-Fort Worth set to debut

Great baked goods and more are coming soon.

Courtesy photo

Frisco will soon to be home to the most spectacular Asian market shopping center in all of Dallas-Fort Worth, with the debut of Frisco Ranch, a new complex at the northwest corner of Preston Road and Warren Parkway.

This is in the heart of Frisco's North Platinum Corridor, just 1.5 miles southeast of the Dallas Cowboys' world headquarters and training facility and the $1.5-billion Star entertainment district.

According to a release, the center will enjoy a parade of grand openings in fall 2018, with an upscale mix of Asian-influenced experiential dining and shopping opportunities — some that are brand new to DFW.

Doors will open this month for the following:

85° C Bakery & Café, the madly popular Taiwanese bakery chain, opening October 5
Daiso Japan, the madly popular hipster dollar store, opening mid- to late-October
Kung Fu Tea, the bubble tea chain, opening in early October
T-Swirl Crepe, the Japanese crepe concept, opening October 3

Education One, a tutoring chain from the East Coast, will open in early November. That will be followed by another round of openings in the first quarter of 2019, with ribbon-cuttings for 99 Ranch Market, the Taiwanese-American grocery chain which will anchor the center, and Gen Korean BBQ, a Korean BBQ concept with all-you-can eat.

Future openings on the horizon include Marufuka Ramen, the exciting West Coast concept that CultureMap broke wide open in August, and Cute Crush, which CultureMap has not written about at all.

They'll join Kura Revolving Sushi Bar, Rice Chicken, and Ace Periodontics & Implant Dentistry, all of which are already open.

And there's more on the way: NewQuest is finalizing leases with three brand new concepts: SomiSomi Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, 7 Leaves, and Sul & Beans, a popular Korean shaved ice dessert.

"People are curious about Frisco Ranch, which is a dining and shopping destination artfully blending mainstream experiences with the Asian culture in a welcoming environment for all ethnicities," says Heather Nguyen, development partner for Houston-based NewQuest.

Leasing to date for the 99,747-sf Frisco Ranch has been so successful that the developer's team, which includes associate John Nguyen, is preleasing a 16,000-sf second phase. The 91%-leased Frisco Ranch is situated on nine acres.

An estimated half-million people are or will be working within the 10-mile trade area of Frisco Ranch. In Far North Dallas, 20% of the population is Asian.

"Frisco Ranch has brand names that are familiar to corporations with ties in California and Asia," Nguyen says. "Many of our tenants wanted to be open for the holiday season – and they will be."

Daiso will come on line during the third week of October, getting its innovative and unique household products into the Far North Dallas marketplace just as the holiday shopping season kicks into gear.

Anchor 99 Ranch Market is on track to open its 44,810-sf store in mid-January. The new store for the California-based Taiwanese American supermarket chain will boast a six-tenant food court, including Beard Papa's, a Japanese sweet shop that's selected Frisco Ranch for its second location in Texas. Billed as having the world's best cream puffs, Beard Papa is owned by California-headquartered Muginoho International Inc., which operates more than 400 stores worldwide.

"Texas is a great market for its ease of entry, good workforce and diversity," says Nguyen, the creator of a niche development strategy that she first introduced at NewQuest's Carrollton Town Center in North Dallas.

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Politics News

Dallas narrows down field for new city manager to 4 candidates

Photo by R K on Unsplash

This is an Dallasite's sign to launch that small business they've been dreaming of.

After six months without a city manager, the city of Dallas has narrowed down the field of replacements to four semifinalists including one serving as current interim city manager, plus candidates from Fort Worth, Michigan, and Georgia.

Dallas has been without a city manager since May, when previous city manager T.C. Broadnax left to take a job with the city of Austin. Since that time, Broadnax's former chief of staff Kimberly Bizor Tolbert has served as interim city manager.

The city retained Baker Tilly, a consulting firm, to recruit and compile candidates. (Baker Tilly famously erred in the brochure it created for the position by featuring a photo of the Houston skyline instead of Dallas; they've since replaced it with Dallas.)

A spokesperson for Baker Tilly did not respond to inquiries but according to D Magazine, an email listing the candidates has been sent to the Dallas City Council.

The semifinalists include:

Kimberly Bizor Tolbert, Dallas’ current interim city manager
William Johnson, an assistant city manager in Fort Worth
Mark Washington, the city manager of Grand Rapids, Michigan
Zachary Williams, a county chief operating officer in Georgia

All have more than 25 years' of public administration experience and have worked in similar capacities in their respective cities.

Before working in Fort Worth, Johnson was Baltimore’s transportation director and Atlanta’s deputy chief operating officer and public works commissioner.

Washington worked in Fort Worth and Austin before becoming Grand Rapids’ city manager.

Williams has mostly worked in Georgia at the county level, including serving as county manager in Fulton County and chief operating officer in DeKalb County.

Tolbert began working for the city in 1998, first as the city manager’s assistant and later in the aviation department. Broadnax hired her as his chief of staff in 2017.

Unlike the Mayor and the Dallas City Council, the city manager position in Dallas is not elected but is instead appointed by the city council, and is tasked with executing policies, overseeing the annual budget, and managing staff at city hall.

The council’s Ad Hoc Committee will choose finalists, introduce them to the public, and make an offer in early 2025.

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