Universal theme park coming to the Fields in Frisco

Fehmi Karahan’s ‘mini city’ is getting a mini theme park.

Following months of planning and negotiations with the City of Frisco, Universal Parks and Resorts has announced it’s bringing a park to the $10 billion Fields development, the Dallas Morning News reported. The theme park is set to occupy land that was previously planned for mixed-use construction that was touted in November.

Universal Parks & Resorts — the theme park arm of entertainment giant NBCUniversal — bought the 100-acre tract in December using a shell company based in Delaware, county records show. The park will include four or five Universal-themed interactive experiences as well as a 300-room hotel.

Few early details are available, but the Frisco park would be significantly smaller than the ones in Orlando, Los Angeles and abroad, the Dallas Morning News reported. That and CEO Mark Woodbury’s indication the park would cater to young children doesn’t bode well for millennials holding their breath for Harry Potter World.

“You have a fantastic town,” Woodbury told the DMN. “It’s vibrant and full of energy and full of young families, which make it the perfect place for what we are doing.

Universal executives didn’t provide a timetable for the project, but property sale records indicate the company has four years to open the park. Woodbury said the attractions will be “built around a lush landscaped environment.”

Mayor Jeff Cheney called it a “one-of-a-kind” project for which Universal considered sites around the globe.

Frisco officials on Tuesday teased the project as a “major economic and tourism development,” which inspired several theories, including the planned $100 million park themed on the comedy troupe “Dude Perfect,” which is based in Frisco.

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— Maddy Sperling