Prosper Council Approves Zoning for $2 Billion Italian-Inspired Village Built Around a Lagoon

Prosper moved closer to gaining an Italian-inspired waterfront village after the Town Council unanimously approved zoning and a planned development for The Marco at its Oct. 27 meeting. The proposed $2 billion project would center on a lagoon of more than 15 acres, with canals large enough for boats and a pedestrian promenade along the water.

The development is planned for 143 acres at the northeast corner of the Dallas North Tollway and US 380, one of the town's most prominent intersections. The council had originally been set to review the project on Sept. 22, but members postponed the discussion to Oct. 27 so town staff could address additional questions and feedback.

Zoning approval is a major milestone, but it does not clear the project to proceed on its own. The Marco still requires agreements covering economic incentives, building standards and permitted uses, impact fee waivers, and parks and open space. Those items will help set the terms for how the development is designed and how public spaces and infrastructure are handled.

The lagoon would be surrounded by restaurants, shops, homes, hotels and public gathering spaces, and it would also function as a stormwater detention feature. A 26-foot-wide pedestrian promenade, called a passeggiata after the Italian term for a leisurely stroll, would circle the water. Plans also include a public square and entertainment areas, and up to two hotels could sit on the lagoon's western and eastern edges.

Commercial uses would reach well beyond restaurants and boutiques. Town documents outline more than 1 million square feet of office space, along with retail, a grocery store, a market hall, services and entertainment space. Offices and other commercial uses would mostly line the Dallas North Tollway and US 380 frontage, and some office buildings could rise to 14 stories, partly to help shield the rest of the site from traffic noise.

The project could include as many as 4,400 residential units. The maximum breakdown allows up to 2,500 mid-rise apartments, up to 1,000 single-family and duplex residences such as villas and townhomes, up to 500 age-restricted apartments, and up to 400 high-rise condominiums or apartments. The mix may change as the project develops, as long as it stays within the 4,400-unit cap and the 2,500 limit on mid-rise apartments. Conceptual plans put much of the mid- and high-rise housing on the eastern side of the property.

The idea is to create a place where people can live, work, shop and spend time without leaving the development for every activity.

BlackStone Communities Principal Jeffory Blackard, who is behind The Marco, also developed Adriatica Village in McKinney. That 45-acre community draws inspiration from Supetar, a fishing village on Croatia's island of Brač. The Marco would apply a similar village concept to a site more than three times as large, with an Italian theme and a major waterfront element.

Blackard has described spending years studying villages around the world and photographing how people move through them. He previously told the council the site is "the best piece of undeveloped real estate, maybe in the world." He added: "If somebody's better than me, then somebody else can go do this. But take care of this corner."

For now, The Marco remains a major proposal for one of Prosper's busiest intersections. If completed as envisioned, it would bring thousands of homes, a large waterfront district and more than 1 million square feet of office space to the corner of the Dallas North Tollway and US 380.