{"id":74982,"date":"2025-12-03T22:42:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-03T22:42:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/74982\/"},"modified":"2025-12-03T22:42:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-03T22:42:09","slug":"what-north-texas-mayors-think-about-d-fws-regional-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/74982\/","title":{"rendered":"What North Texas mayors think about D-FW\u2019s regional future"},"content":{"rendered":"

As North Texas grows<\/a> in population and power, six mayors of some of the region\u2019s largest cities<\/a> called for collaboration and continued emphasis on economic development at the Dallas Regional Chamber\u2019s State of the Region address.<\/p>\n

The mayors of Fort Worth, Arlington, Garland, Frisco, McKinney and Richardson spoke in Richardson Wednesday about the importance of attracting businesses to the region, how state legislation<\/a> has wrestled with cities for local control and why working cooperatively has given North Texas a regional advantage. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we work together, we win together,\u201d said Dale Petroskey<\/a>, president of the Dallas Regional Chamber, at the start of the address. <\/p>\n

Leaders emphasized the need to work together at a pivotal period for North Texas amid booming economic and population growth<\/a>, regional flashpoints in changing transportation and resource needs, and a shifting center of gravity outside of Dallas. <\/p>\n

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Related<\/p>\n

\"Signs<\/p>\n

\u201cOur power is really regional,\u201d said Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker in her remarks. \u201cAnd now soon to be the third largest metro region in the entire country \u2026 all of us working together really reflects the success of the Dallas-Fort Worth region. And the sky\u2019s the limit.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the next 10 years, the region is projected to grow to 10 million, surpassing Chicago, the third-largest U.S. metro area, according to the Texas Demographic Center.<\/a><\/p>\n

Leaders of other cities were also invited to speak at the address, including the mayors of Dallas and Plano, but they declined to attend due to conflicts, according to Dana Jennings, the DRC\u2019s executive vice president. <\/p>\n

\u2018The greener grass\u2019<\/p>\n

Petroskey has led the chamber for nearly 12 years and said since 2014, the region has seen more than 800 significant corporate relocations and expansions<\/a> and more than 300 headquarters have moved to the area \u2014 including Caterpillar, Charles Schwab and Toyota\u2019s North American headquarters.<\/p>\n

For many businesses looking to relocate<\/a> to North Texas, it\u2019s not a matter of if they\u2019ll come to D-FW, but a question of where, Arlington Mayor Jim Ross said on the panel.<\/p>\n

\"Arlington<\/p>\n

Arlington Mayor Jim Ross speaks during a breakfast meeting for the Dallas Regional Chamber\u2019s State of the Region, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Richardson. <\/p>\n

Chitose Suzuki \/ Staff Photographer<\/p>\n

\u201cThey just haven\u2019t decided what part of North Texas they\u2019re coming to yet, and that gives us the edge on so many communities around the country,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

In the \u201cTexas triangle\u201d of D-FW, Houston, Austin and San Antonio, North Texas is the region\u2019s \u201ceconomic heart,\u201d said Mike Rosa, Senior Vice President of Economic Development at the Dallas Regional Chamber.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are the greener grass,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Rosa lauded innovative sectors like artificial intelligence, life sciences<\/a>, data centers and autonomous mobility in D-FW, and other leaders spoke to the industries that help cities balance cooperation and competition. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe do this nice, friendly \u2018cooper-tition,\u2019\u201d Frisco Mayor Jeff Cheney said. \u201cBut having your own niche and brand really helps [us] stand out. And I think all the cities in the D-FW have done that, and that\u2019s a big part of the story, as far as why [we\u2019ve] become a powerhouse.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

For Frisco and Arlington, sports and tourism dominate local economic development projects. In Fort Worth, Parker spoke to film and television production<\/a>\u2019s impact on the local economy. But local leaders underscored that a rising tide lifts all ships when it comes to the region\u2019s economic development goals. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe all compete against each other for businesses,\u201d Ross said. \u201cBut the bottom line, I know that the better Richardson does, the better we do, the better Frisco does, the better we do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Conflict in Austin <\/p>\n

The six mayors were unified in their concern about state legislation that has taken over local control \u2014 including a new law<\/a> that allows more apartments and mixed-use residential buildings without city approval.<\/p>\n

In the most recent legislative session, lawmakers also passed new rules that slashed some homeowners\u2019 property taxes<\/a>. The Texas Regulatory Consistency Act, passed in 2023, bars local governments in Texas from creating or enforcing local rules that go beyond state law<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Related<\/p>\n

\"SB<\/p>\n

\u201cIt seems like it\u2019s an all-out attack every two years on cities,\u201d Cheney said. \u201cAll the tools that we have in place that have [contributed] to our success are being taken away from us every single session.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leaders emphasized how local governance is harder with blanket rules on development and politicized agendas that muddy local efforts. <\/p>\n

\u201cI know my neighborhood better than someone who\u2019s in Austin, and I sure as hell know better than someone who\u2019s in Washington,\u201d Garland Mayor Dylan Hedrick said.<\/p>\n

DART and regional transit\u2019s future<\/p>\n

As several cities seek an exit from the Dallas Area Rapid Transit<\/a> system, the future of regional transit has come into question. At least four cities<\/a> will hold elections next year to withdraw from DART, the state\u2019s largest public transportation agency. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think it would be an awful thing if we end up losing any of the cities,\u201d Richardson Mayor Amir Omar told The Dallas Morning News following the address. \u201cFrankly, I think the better thing for the entire region is for more cities to join.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Omar said leaders of DART\u2019s 13 member cities<\/a> meet regularly to work toward a solution, and he believes it\u2019s possible Plano, Irving, Farmers Branch and Highland Park will call off their withdrawal elections and come to an agreement with the agency. <\/p>\n

But regional connectivity extends northward as the D-FW center of gravity moves north<\/a>. Cheney said communities like Celina are now living Frisco\u2019s story of growth 20 years later. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe northern part of D-FW<\/a> is going to continue to grow, and so we\u2019re already collaborating as a region in McKinney, Plano, Frisco,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re thinking about that as a region from a transportation perspective, from an amenity perspective.\u201d<\/p>\n

Email tips on all things Collin County to lilly.kersh@dallasnews.com. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As North Texas grows in population and power, six mayors of some of the region\u2019s largest cities called…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":74983,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[960,918,116,118,117,411,413,2184,1063,223],"class_list":["post-74982","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fort-worth","tag-collin-county","tag-economy","tag-fort-worth","tag-fort-worth-headlines","tag-fort-worth-news","tag-future-of-north-texas","tag-future-of-north-texas-infrastructure","tag-jobs","tag-local-politics","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74982","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=74982"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74982\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/74983"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=74982"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=74982"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=74982"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}