After engineering its own growth, can the Dallas suburb stay on top" It?s one of the fastest-growing cities in the nation. It was named the best place to live in America by Money magazine in 2018. It?s the headquarters of the Dallas Cowboys and soon the Professional Golfers? Association. Its ?$5 billion mile,? a stretch of commercial development along the Dallas North Tollway, may end up with more corporate office space than downtown Dallas.
The city in question is Frisco, Texas, a suburb 30 miles north of Dallas. Just 30 years ago it was a sleepy farm town of 6,000 people. But as the Dallas-Fort Worth area has attracted more and more corporate relocations, Frisco has absorbed more than its fair share of the growth and wealth that?s come with them. Now home to around 190,000 people, Frisco can hardly be considered a suburb at all, as residents can live, work, and play within its 62 square miles. The city?s expansion has been deliberate, and carefully engineered. But a number of nearby suburbs have seen similar growth only to fall out of favor later, suggesting potential pitfalls for Frisco. City leaders are now tasked with saving Frisco from that fate.
?What we?re trying to avoid is being that bright star that starts fading out, but [instead] actually maintains its appeal as it ages, and maybe even has some more appeal,? says George Purefoy, Frisco?s city manager since 1987. ?That?s what we?re hopeful will happen, but the story won?t be told for a few more decade...