Park on Level 1 or 2 of Parking Deck D at The Shops at Willow Bend and you can still walk indoors through a limited part of the building. Indoor walking has been available there since Oct. 1 and is expected to continue through early 2027. The other way in is through The District, near Knife Steakhouse and Mexican Bar Company. The mall's current event listing covers indoor walking and a notice that the restaurants are still open and serving. It lists no Santa, no tree lighting and no holiday market this year.
The enclosed mall closed to most shoppers on Monday, Aug. 31, when D Magazine reported that tenants turned in their keys ahead of a proposed $3 billion sports and entertainment district. What remains is a short list of businesses, and most of them have a published end date. All of those dates were set before Plano voters went to the polls on Nov. 3. The vote added uncertainty about what gets built here, but it did not move the dates on which this property stops working as a mall. The two restaurants that signed on for the long term are the only part of the property certain to be open next holiday season.
The Dates That Were Already Set
Here is how the season ends at 6121 W. Park Blvd., in order:
- Thursday, Nov. 26: Mexican Bar Company serves Thanksgiving from 11 a.m. to last seating at 8 p.m.
- Through Dec. 27: D Magazine reported that the Crate & Barrel on the building's exterior would stay open through this date.
- January 2027: Neiman Marcus has said it will stay open until January 2027, according to The Dallas Morning News.
- January or February: Bill Cawley of Cawley Partners said at Bisnow's 2026 Collin County State of the Market event in October that demolition was set to begin in this window.
- Early 2027: The indoor walking route is expected to end.
Neiman Marcus, at 2201 Dallas Parkway, is the last department store on this list, and this is its final holiday season at Willow Bend. The Dallas Morning News reported that the store announced last year it would stay open until January 2027. That makes it one of the last department stores at a property that had already lost Macy's and Dillard's. If your holiday shopping has included a December stop at this Neiman Marcus, this is the season to plan it.
Crate & Barrel's reported last day is two days after Christmas. After that, the building's exterior storefronts go quiet, apart from the two restaurants.
The Two Addresses With Leases Through 2038
Knife Steakhouse and Mexican Bar Company have leases that run through 2038, according to D Magazine. That is more than a decade past every other date on the calendar above. Both restaurants sit on the outside of the old mall, so the closure did not close them.
Knife Steakhouse is at 6121 W. Park Blvd., Suite RS9, and its website lists lunch daily from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., plus dinner service. Owner and managing partner George Stergios told KERA's NTX Now that he signed a 20-year lease in 2018 and has stayed through ownership changes and a nine-month pandemic shutdown in 2020. He said the restaurant's biggest challenge is visibility:
"People forget about us and people are lumping us in with what's coming, assuming we're already closed or going to be closed, which is not the case."
Stergios also told KERA that much of Knife's weekday business comes from out-of-state visitors and corporate dinners, alongside regulars the restaurant has built since 2018.
Mexican Bar Company says it will stay open through demolition and redevelopment. It lists its address as 2405 Dallas Pkwy., Suite RS-10, and its Thanksgiving hours are the first date on the calendar above. The restaurants also mark the second indoor walking entrance, so a morning walk through the building can end at either one.
Where the Holiday Events Moved
With no holiday programming on the mall's calendar, the season's events around Willow Bend have moved to the shopping districts and parks nearby. These are the confirmed 2026 dates from Thursday, Nov. 19, onward:
| Date | Event | Where | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov. 20 to Dec. 30 | Lights on the Farmstead | Heritage Farmstead Museum | $15 adults, $12 youth, military and seniors |
| Nov. 21 to 22 | Plano Holiday Market | Carpenter Park Recreation Center | Free |
| Sun., Nov. 22 | Lights at Legacy East, tree lighting at 6:30 p.m. | The Shops at Legacy East | Free |
| Saturdays, Nov. 21 to Dec. 26 | North Pole Live Music Series: Holiday Edition, 5 to 7 p.m. | Legacy West | No cost listed |
| Dec. 1 to 30 | Deerfield Holiday Lights | Deerfield, viewed by car | Free |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | Dickens in Downtown Plano | Downtown Plano Arts District and Haggard Park | Free |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | Santa's Sleighin' Holiday Event and Market, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. | The Boardwalk at Granite Park | No admission price listed |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | Downtown Plano Holiday Market, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Downtown Plano Arts District | Free |
Lights at Legacy East is the closest replacement for a mall tree lighting. Live entertainment runs from 4 to 6:30 p.m. and the tree is lit at 6:30. Visit Plano's listing for the event shows $30 Santa photos from 4 to 6:15 p.m. that evening. Santa then moves into the Legacy East Portrait Studio near Truluck's from Nov. 28 through Dec. 22.
Legacy West has the busiest December schedule nearby:
- Black Friday, Nov. 27: carolers.
- Dec. 4 to 6 and Dec. 11 to 12: Santa photos at Santa's Sleigh, near Nike and Free People, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Booking is available.
- Sat., Dec. 5: Holly Jolly Sip & Shop, noon to 4 p.m., across the district's stores and restaurants. Ages 21 and up.
- Sat., Dec. 12: Kids Holiday Crafting, noon to 3 p.m., at Santa's Sleigh.
- Sun., Dec. 13: the free Reindeer Run Club Holiday Bash starts at Nike at 7:30 a.m., with a 3-mile or 5K run or walk. Santa Paws pet photos follow from 1 to 3 p.m.
Dec. 13 is the fullest day of the season. Granite Park's Boardwalk market, the Downtown Plano Holiday Market and both Legacy West events all fall on that Sunday, so one weekend covers a run, pet photos and two markets. The Boardwalk event features Santa, Frosty, a Snow Princess, kids' activities and a local market, with the festivities starting at noon.
What the Nov. 3 Vote Changed, and What It Didn't
Plano voters rejected Proposition A on Nov. 3 by nearly 55%, The Dallas Morning News reported. The measure would have authorized five venue taxes to help fund a new Dallas Stars arena at the Willow Bend site. They would have applied to tickets, event parking, hotel rooms, car rentals and teams using the arena.
The arena can still move forward without the venue taxes, but the city's financing plan for it now has to be reworked. City Manager Mark Israelson said in a statement that "without authorization for these venue taxes, the proposed financing approach would need to be reassessed before City Council considers any actions related to the arena." Representatives for the Stars said they remain committed to the project. The team's lease at American Airlines Center expires in 2031. The City of Plano's Willow Bend District project page lists sports and entertainment venues, retail, restaurants, housing, public space and infrastructure as possible parts of the district. It also notes that the City Council approved a non-binding letter of intent with the Stars on June 8, 2026. The Dallas Morning News reported that the master agreement, site plan and community benefits were still being negotiated as of Nov. 4.
The vote did not change the end dates for the current buildings. Crate & Barrel's Dec. 27 date, Neiman Marcus's January closing and the early 2027 end of indoor walking were all set before the election. Centennial CEO Steven Levin said in March that demolition would likely happen within 12 months, according to The Dallas Morning News. What fills the roughly 90-acre site is still being negotiated, while demolition of the current buildings is forecast for the first months of 2027. Knife Steakhouse and Mexican Bar Company hold leases through 2038 at this corner of Park Boulevard and the Dallas North Tollway.
If you live near Willow Bend and want to talk through what the redevelopment could mean for your street as plans firm up, The Bracchi Group is following each step and is glad to share what we're seeing, whenever the timing is right for you. Contact Us.
