The Shops at Willow Bend Closed. Its Doors Are Closing One at a Time.

On the last Sunday before the mall closed, D Magazine's Mike Piellucci brought his toddler to the Medical City Plano playground one more time. In his farewell essay for D Magazine, he describes about nine kids running around and teens taking photos. Workers walked past with chairs from a common area on their shoulders. The next day, Monday, August 31, tenants turned in their keys.

That date was the end of The Shops at Willow Bend as a mall. The building itself is still in use. Several of its pieces are still running, each on its own schedule, and those schedules end anywhere from this December to 2038. For anyone in Willow Bend Estates who used the place for dinner, a workout, a show or a climate-controlled walk, the useful question is which door to use and how long it will stay open.

Two Entrances for Walking, Through Early 2027

Indoor walking survived the closure, though in a smaller area. Starting October 1, the mall says walking will continue in a limited part of the center and is expected to last through early 2027. There are two ways in:

• Parking Deck D, through the NTPA Entrance on levels 1 and 2
• The District, through the entrance near Knife Steakhouse and Mexican Bar Company

The homepage still shows regular daily hours. The walking notice is the more reliable guide to what is actually open inside. Both entrances lead to the businesses that are still there, and that's the logic behind the rest of this list.

The District Has the Longest Lease in the Building

Knife Steakhouse and Mexican Bar Company remain open during the redevelopment. D Magazine reported that both leases run through 2038. That is more than a decade beyond any other date in this post.

The restaurants also fit the redevelopment plan. When the arena plan was described in June, the roughly 65,000-square-foot restaurant district was on the list of things to keep, along with Equinox, Crate & Barrel, the Neiman Marcus building and the parking structures. The enclosed inline shops, Dillard's and the former Crayola Experience space were on the list for removal. The parts with their own exterior entrances and parking were kept. The interior concourses that held the mall together were not.

Equinox also has its own address. Its Plano club page still lists 6109 West Park Boulevard with posted hours and membership options.

The Theater Is Still Running Shows

North Texas Performing Arts is the tenant with the most going on this fall. Its listings still place Plano productions at the Willow Bend Center of the Arts. In the Heights ran October 15 through 18 in the Rodenbaugh Theatre. Two more shows are on the calendar:

1. Sweeney Todd School Edition, in the Brodie Copeland Theatre, through October 25
2. Annie KIDS, in the Egelston Akers Black Box Theatre, October 29 through November 1

The ticket page notes that tickets go on sale about four weeks before each performance. Check the NTPA ticket page before you go, because the company is partway through a move.

That move is NTPA's next chapter. Community Impact reported in July that the company is relocating to 2819 W. 15th St., the former Holiday Warehouse, with four stages plus rehearsal and education space. At the time, NTPA projected that theater build-out would be done by December 1 and that performances would begin at the new site in January. Those dates were forecasts in July, so watch the company's own announcements for confirmation.

The Rest of the Calendar

Each remaining piece has its own end date, and most of them come before the walking access ends.

D Magazine printed the Crate & Barrel date as "December 27" with no year. Given when that piece was published, the end of this year is the natural reading. Neiman Marcus is closing because Saks Global sold the store property to Centennial, according to Community Impact.

Several familiar names closed before the August deadline. California Pizza Kitchen closed on September 28, 2025. Crayola Experience last operated on February 6, 2026. Dillard's, at 2501 Dallas Parkway, was expected to close in January 2026.

Where the Departing Tenants Went

Most of the departing tenants have no announced new home yet. A few do.

Healing Touch Massage Chairs & Beds was in Suite A113, near the kids' play area between Equinox and Crate & Barrel. It plans to move to 1900 Preston Park, Suite 250, near Park Boulevard and Preston Road, and its website gives the timing as "Mid October." WFAA reported that the store was given extra time past August 31 to finish building out the new location. Nathan Brown of Healing Touch told the station, "one door opens after another door closes."

The Plano Art Association agreed to stay in Suite A218 through August 31 and then close the gallery, which it had opened at the mall in 2024. Its gallery page now says the gallery is closed until a new location is found. This summer's juried 125 Show ran August 6 through 30 at Ten 20 Art Gallery, 1001 14th Street, Suite 200, in downtown Plano. The association's calendar is the place to watch for its next venue.

Two longtime shops were still inside when WFAA visited. Rico Shoe Care has repaired shoes on the second floor for 19 years, and Pedro Rico told the station customers were still coming. Cutlery Collection on the ground floor has sold and sharpened knives for 25 years. Its owner told WFAA he had been told he might be able to stay only through December, and that he "may pop up somewhere else." If you have a knife or a pair of shoes that needs work, this fall may be the last chance to bring it to Willow Bend.

What Is Planned for the Site

The schedules above line up with the redevelopment plan. Centennial owns the property. On June 2, 2026, the Dallas Stars announced a nonbinding letter of intent for a proposed arena and sports and entertainment district at the site, with Levin Holdings and Cawley Partners as development partners. Community Impact puts the district at roughly $3 billion. That plan replaced the residential-heavy "The Bend" plan the City Council approved on February 24, 2025.

On June 8, according to the City of Plano's release, the council approved the letter of intent, an incentive agreement, a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone and a resolution needed to call a venue tax election. The release describes a district with the arena, other venues, retail, restaurants, residential development and public spaces. It also says the TIRZ boundary includes only non-residential properties along the Dallas North Tollway.

The election is on November 3, 2026. The propositions concern authority to levy a short-term motor vehicle rental tax, a hotel occupancy tax, an event parking tax, an event admissions tax and a venue use tax on major league team members who play a professional game in the arena, with proceeds going to the arena and related infrastructure. On October 12, the council approved an agreement under which Plano ISD could contribute up to $250 million to the TIRZ. Community Impact reported that the agreement does not change the city's planned $700 million contribution. The city's release is the primary source for the ballot language. This post describes the measures and is not tax or voting guidance.

Demolition is expected to begin in early 2027, about when the walking access is scheduled to end. Community Impact reported that Steven Levin believes there is "a good shot" the arena could be ready when the Stars' lease at American Airlines Center expires in 2031. That is a developer's hope, not a confirmed opening date. Until then, the reliable dates are the shorter ones: Sweeney Todd through October 25, Annie KIDS on October 29, Crate & Barrel through December 27, and Neiman Marcus in January.

A site that changes this much over the next few years will affect commutes, errands and what's within a short drive of home in West Plano. If you're weighing a move into or out of Willow Bend Estates while that plays out, Jenelle Berry-Cook can help you think through the timing. Let's Connect.