Cedar Park is set to get a new $55 million event and retail center in 2009. The center piece will be a new hockey arena which will house an affiliate hockey team of the Dallas Stars.
Cedar Park Mayor Bob Lemon said Wednesday night's deal to approve the new entertainment center wrapped up six years of work.
"I'm very excited. This is the culmination of almost six years of trying to make a deal work," he said.
The City of Cedar Park did make a deal with the Hicks Sports Marketing Group, owners of the Dallas Stars.
"This is going to be a hit, we're going to be very successful here, we're going to sell a lot of tickets here and we're thrilled about it," Jim Lites with the Hicks Sports Marketing Group said.
In 2005 voters approved a tax bond for a multipurpose event center. The city will fund $40 million of the $55 million project with sales tax revenue. The Hicks Group will fund the difference.
But not everyone is thrilled. Some people said they've been left in the dark on the project and had never heard of the planned project.
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Entertainment center
Wednesday night Cedar Park city
leaders sealed the deal on plans to
build a $55 million event center.
 
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"I knew it was possibly in the works but I didn't realize it was anything finalized or anything for voting or anything like that," Cedar Park resident Bob Barrall said.
Laura Waller-Delarosa, a concerned resident, said that city officials did not include the public's input during city council meetings.
"The main concern that I have is that city council spoke in executive session and didn't consider the voters opinions on this," Waller-Delarosa said.
But even those who were left in the dark can see the potential benefits.
"Anything to build Cedar Park's tax base, I think is a good thing," Barrall said.
The project will include 48 acres of retail shops and restaurants too, making Cedar Park an entertainment destination.
A name for the event center has not been determined yet.
The bidding for subcontractors will begin February 29. The construction is set to start this June.
