AT&T has announced it will move its global headquarters to Plano. What's less clear is what will happen to its $100 million Discovery District and other operations in downtown Dallas.
The new campus, located on 54 acres, will allow the company to consolidate all Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex administrative space.
AT&T CEO John Stankey told employees the nature of the company and its work has evolved since it moved its headquarters to Dallas in 2008.
The company made changes over the years to reshape its downtown space to become an "urban technology campus".
Construction on the $100 million Discovery District began in 2018 and finished in 2021. It serves as a mix of public space and corporate campus, with a 104-foot-tall "media wall" wrapped around the corner of one of the perimeter buildings overlooking the 5,400 square foot lawn.
The company has not said what will happen to the Discovery District once its headquarters moves. Downtown Dallas Inc. also is not aware of any future plans as of this week.
"We don’t know what the future plans are for AT&T — we only know they are moving headquarters to Plano," a spokesperson with Downtown Dallas Inc. told KERA in an email.
Jennifer Scripps, Downtown Dallas Inc. President & CEO, said in a statement that the headquarters relocation was challenging.
She said AT&T helped anchor Dallas as a global business center, invested millions of dollars to the urban core, and supported thousands of Dallas based jobs.
"The company’s presence helped catalyze redevelopment, innovation, and confidence in Downtown at a pivotal moment in the city’s history, including the creation of the AT&T Discovery District as a signature public space," Scripps said in the statement.
Gov. Greg Abbott alleged during a press conference on Tuesday that AT&T was leaving Dallas because of homelessness in downtown.
An AT&T spokesperson said the company had nothing to share on that topic.
Ray Perryman is the founder and CEO of The Perryman Group, economic analyst group based out of Waco.
He told KERA in an email that the loss of a long-time anchor and high-profile company is a blow to the downtown area.
But AT&T's move out of downtown is not unique to Dallas.
He said the relocation is part of a long-term trend of activity shifting to suburban hubs, which accelerated during the pandemic.
However, Perryman said Dallas remains vibrant compared to most major urban areas.
"With effective business and governmental leadership, it will continue to be a vital force in the region," he said in an email. "There may not be a single high-profile user to replace AT&T, but rather a mixture of diverse types of activity."
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