Therme resort along Trinity River tweaks plans, adds skybridge to buildout

Therme Dallas is looking for city approval to add a pedestrian skybridge and new non-residential zones to their $800 million resort development.

The Austrian wellness company is looking to break ground on the 24-acre, 500,000-square-foot resort in 2027. Plans for the massive resort on 1500 South Riverfront Boulevard include swim-up bars, thermal baths, saunas and restaurants, all within a beach-like atmosphere with a retractable glass roof. The skybridge will connect two of the planned buildings, according to the Dallas Business Journal, but which two is unclear.

Therme raised eyebrows around a year ago when it purchased the land for the resort. The development was pitched to the city as a “crown jewel” along the Trinity River waterfront. Its site is right next to the Water Commons urban wetlands park development and downstream from Harold Simmons Park.

While the plans seem enticing, questions about Therme’s capability to deliver remain. A New York Times article revealed that the company misrepresented itself to the public and the government of Ontario about its experience in development. The controversy centered around a statement that the company “has proven the success of its concept with six globally-placed facilities under construction,” which was proven false.

In conversations with Dallas city officials, Therme stated that it had locations in Romania and Germany. But, reports indicated that the company has only developed one spa, in Bucharest. The other locations were under the umbrella of a different company, but one with the same name and logo. At the time, a Therme spokesperson told The Real Deal that they refuted the claim that they had misrepresented themselves, and said they meant that the concept had shown success.

Despite the controversy, it appears that with the adjustments to its plans, Therme Dallas is inching closer to formal construction. In previous TRD reporting, the spa-resort planned along the Trinity would mark the company’s first U.S. location, and signal the beginning of 10 wellness resorts it wants to build in the states over a decade.

— Hunter Cooke