The Dallas Stars and the City of Farmers Branch are building an 81,780-square-foot, multi-sport youth facility that’s slated to open next December. Dubbed the StarCenter Multi-Sport Farmers Branch, the venue will cost more than $20 million to build, according to Stars President and CEO Brad Alberts. An estimated 900,000 visitors will come through the doors each year, per the city.
“We’re very bullish on the growth of youth sports in Dallas and the need for facilities like these—and this one will be the very best in Farmers Branch,” Alberts said. “We expect to turn a profit on our investment very quickly and anticipate that this building will be full and very busy right away.”
The StarCenter Multi-Sport Farmers Branch will sit next to the Children’s Health StarCenter-Farmers Branch—a Stars youth hockey facility—at the intersection of Interstate 35-E and I-635. The city will utilize already approved and issued bonds to build the complex.
The Stars have a 25-year lease on the facility, which will accommodate up to eight basketball courts or 16 volleyball courts, with pickleball court adaptability. It marks the team’s second multi-sport facility to go alongside its eight StarCenter ice rinks—with 20 sheets of ice—throughout North Texas.
Across the Stars’ ice rink portfolio, the organization sees a total annual attendance of more than 8.5 million. In all, the Stars serve more than 80,000 youth athletes per year and own more sheets of ice than any other club in the NHL.
In November 2022, the organization acquired The MAC, a 38,000-square-foot, multi-sport youth facility in Lewisville that sees a yearly attendance of about 75,000. Additionally, Alberts is in discussions with the city of Northlake to add to its youth sports facility portfolio with another ground-up build.
He envisions the Northlake facility boasting a configuration similar to the Farmers Branch venue with 16 volleyball courts or eight basketball courts with pickleball courts, but he also plans to build two ice rinks.
“The City of Northlake is doing a lot out there by the racetrack, and this facility will be part of a huge development plan in that area,” Alberts said.
In 2022, the Stars purchased the largest youth volleyball organization in DFW—Texas Advantage Volleyball—as well as the 14-team organization Attack Volleyball Club. The two clubs merged under the Texas Advantage Volleyball name and will play its games at the new Farmers Branch facility, once it is built.
Construction on the Farmers Branch project will be led by Lee Lewis Construction.
The Stars are also looking to add to its portfolio of youth sports facility outside of the North Texas region. “Our group led by Damon Boettcher is having a number of discussions throughout Texas about facilities like these,” Alberts said. “I strongly believe in scaling appropriately—and we see a need. We feel that we’re a company that is uniquely positioned to be able to operate these facilities, not only in DFW but throughout the state.”
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