Emails Show AT&T Concerns About Dallas Before Exit

AT&T’s decision to abandon downtown Dallas may have had less to do with campus design and more to do with City Hall.

Emails from CEO John Stankey reveal the telecom giant had deep concerns about Dallas’ “effective/sustained governance” months before announcing plans to leave its longtime home at Whitacre Tower, according to communications reviewed by the Dallas Morning News.

The records complicate the narrative city leaders initially offered for AT&T’s move. When the company announced in January that it would relocate to a 54-acre campus at 5400 Legacy Drive in Plano, officials said the telecom giant primarily wanted a sprawling, horizontal campus with room to consolidate offices. But the emails suggest broader frustration with conditions in the city’s central business district.

Stankey raised those concerns directly with Dallas City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert during discussions in 2025, as the company evaluated future headquarters options.

“My concerns transcend the immediate issues and moment and extend to the ongoing and cyclical nature of our challenges with effective/sustained governance of the City,” Stankey wrote in a May 11 email following a meeting with Tolbert. He said the issues weighed on “the long-term lens on the best decisions for AT&T.”

The exchange came during a months-long effort by city officials to keep one of Dallas’ most prominent corporate tenants downtown.

In March 2025, Dallas Economic Development Corporation CEO Linda McMahon told city officials that AT&T was scouting locations for a potential new headquarters. Later briefing materials show the company issued a request for proposals focused on suburban sites near Highway 121 and the Dallas North Tollway — with no options inside Dallas city limits.

Tolbert attempted to reassure the telecom giant that the city was tackling quality of life concerns in the downtown core. In a letter following their May meeting, she highlighted initiatives to boost police presence, expand homeless outreach and improve public safety.

“Ensuring AT&T remains a vital and secure anchor in our community is a top priority,” Tolbert wrote.

City leaders later doubled down on those efforts. By August, Tolbert pointed to the city’s “Safe in the City” initiative and said increased policing downtown had helped cut crime by more than 25 percent since late 2024.

The outreach failed to sway the company, as AT&T ultimately chose the Plano site after evaluating multiple options. In January, Stankey said the move was for office consolidation, saying the Plano site will allow AT&T to “cost effectively consolidate all Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex administrative space,” including major offices in Dallas, Plano and Irving, while creating a purpose-built corporate campus.

— Eric Weilbacher