Irving could be the next city in Texas to consider approving an ordinance for a Media Production Development Zone — a designation that would promote film production in the city through tax exemptions.
The Media Production Development Zone Act was established in 2009 to encourage the development of permanent media production sites in the state. The act is administered by the Texas Film Commission and allows for sales and use tax exemption to construct, maintain, expand, or renovate a media production facility for up to a two-year period.
The Irving City Council heard a review of the Media Production Development Zone Act during its work session last week.
Irving received its first request for an ordinance, which the city would have to approve for Texas Film Commission consideration, Economic Development Manager Bryan Haywood said during the meeting. The city did not disclose who requested the ordinance or where the location would be.
Irving wouldn’t be the first in the Dallas-Fort Worth to show interest. Fort Worth previously threw its hat in the ring, with the city council voting last month to approve its own request for a Media Production Development Zones, or MPDZ. Its application is currently under review. Dallas is seeking the same designation.
However, Haywood added that there is a limit to how many zones can be approved statewide and per region.
There can only be 10 active MPDZs in the state at any time and only five allowed per economic region, according to the Texas Government Code. There can be up to three qualified production locations per zone.
Irving Communications Manager Saul Garza said in an email that the city is still in economic development negotiations, so there is no timeline for whether the City Council will approve an ordinance.
Haywood said there are currently at least three cities approved for MPDZs in the state, two of which are in the Dallas-Fort Worth region.
Fort Worth was the second city in Texas to be approved for a MPDZ, back in 2018, Fort Worth Economic Development Communications Coordinator Andrea Duffie said in an email. It used the zone designation for one location in the city’s Near Southside to grow Red Productions and Backlot Media.
The city’s new application specifies 2701 Spirit Drive in Alliance as the first production location within the city’s proposed MPDZ.
The site is registered with the Texas Department of Licensing and Registration as a 45,114 square-foot office and production studio space in an existing industrial building.
The state's investment in film and television production saw a boost in 2023, when the Texas Legislature approved a two-year $200 million for the Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Program. In North Texas alone, the city of Midlothian has productions of “The Chosen,” and Fort Worth has held productions for Taylor Sheridan’s “1883” and “Landman” shows, Haywood said.
“The biggest part about this is obviously it becomes a potential tool in an economic box,” he said during the meeting.
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