Jennifer Groysman delivers her message at a community event, organized by the Stop the Stars political action committee, in Plano on October 6, 2026.
Steve Hamm/The Dallas Morning News
PLANO — Grabbing “Puck No” yard signs and “Vote No on Prop A” flyers, dozens of Plano residents filed into a church sanctuary Tuesday night to hear their neighbors’ case against the funding for a proposed arena that could become the new home of the Dallas Stars.
The attendees heard a presentation by the Stop the Stars Arena political action committee that detailed the group’s platform against a venue tax election this fall. The group’s members insist the proposed Dallas Stars arena will cost Plano taxpayers too much risk.
“By saying no to this proposition, what we are telling [the city] is, go back to the drawing board,” said Satish Chukka, a Plano resident for 16 years who attended the committee’s event. “What you are doing right now in terms of the economic model is not right. Come up with a better plan.”
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The committee is against Proposition A, which will ask residents to approve venue taxes to help fund a new arena for the NHL franchise at The Shops at Willow Bend mall site.
Related: Plano voters to decide on five taxes for a new Dallas Stars arena
The proposition would allow the council to levy up to five taxes — on tickets, parking, hotel stays and rental cars, plus fees on teams using the arena.
Residents are debating whether the development will revitalize the area where the aging shopping mall is located or expose Plano taxpayers to financial risks while adding potential traffic, noise and crime. With early voting nearing, campaigns are pitting the hockey team’s well-funded PAC against a passionate group of residents ready to defend Plano’s suburban character.
“We are a group of 30 who have worked for now 15 weeks,” said Karen Dubrow, a leader of the Stop the Stars PAC. “We have not slept. We have worked to gather all of this information to ask all the questions and to get most of them not answered. And we are being outspent.”
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Victory Green Plano, the political action committee in favor of Proposition A, is backed by over $200,000 from the Dallas Stars’ business entity, according to campaign finance reports released this week. From Aug. 11 to Sept. 24, the Stars were the PAC’s sole contributor. The money has gone to texts, mailers and videos received by Plano residents.
A large crowd was in attendance for a a community awareness event organized by the Stop the Stars Arena political action committee at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Plano on October 6, 2026.
Steve Hamm/The Dallas Morning News
“The Dallas Stars’ move to Plano is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the Stars, the City of Plano, and its residents,” the Dallas Stars shared in a statement. “Voting yes for Proposition A is a vote to bring world-class hockey and significant economic opportunity to the community.”
The Stop the Stars group has taken on the multi-billion dollar franchise, filing a complaint against what they say are misleading advertisements and countering with their own ads and signs. The group collected over $3,000 between Sept. 17 and Oct. 5, according to its most recent campaign finance report, given by eight individuals with Plano addresses.
In the event hosted by the Stop the Stars group at the Lord of Life Lutheran Church Tuesday, nearly 100 residents attended and asked questions about what the project could mean for local taxpayers.
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Jennifer Groysman, a Plano resident, spoke to attendees and questioned whether publicly subsidized sports stadiums benefit local economies in ways officials claim.
Stop the Stars Arena organizer Karen Dubrow speaks to a crowd at an event hosted by the political action committee in Plano on October 6, 2026.
Steve Hamm/The Dallas Morning News
“If the Stars want a new arena, they need to pay for it themselves to be successful,” she said at Tuesday’s event.
City leaders are working on a traffic analysis and studying infrastructure and neighborhood impacts. An advisory committee of 10 council-appointed residents meets and provides feedback to the city. Plano hosted open houses over the summer to share information about the project. It’s not enough for some residents.
“They want us to approve the unknown,” Dubrow said.
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Through a tax increment reinvestment zone, Plano officials approved a $700 million commitment to the proposed $1 billion arena, which is slated to be surrounded by another $2 billion mixed-use entertainment district.
The arena, which would be owned by the city, could go forward even without voter support of the venue taxes, according to city officials.
“They are going to do it, but I don’t want them to do it this way,” Chukka said.
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