The amphitheater will be a year-round venue, featuring a capacity of 20,000 people, 295 luxury fire pit suites, 350 premium memberships and 5,100 parking spaces.
MCKINNEY, Texas — This article was originally published by our content partners at the Dallas Business Journal. You can read the original article here.
Work is well underway on a $300 million amphitheater in McKinney designed to bring year-round live entertainment to the booming city.
Colorado-based Venu Holding Corp. began infrastructure work in early January and is on track to start vertical construction this spring, founder and CEO J.W. Roth said.
Roth, who recently led Venu to an initial public offering on the NYSE American stock exchange, sat down with Dallas Business Journal on Jan. 31 to discuss the development process as well as the venue’s unique business model.
Plans for Sunset Amphitheater were first unveiled in early 2024. Venu, formerly known as Notes Live Inc., secured a development agreement with the city that April and site plan approval followed in November.
Earlier this month, the hospitality and live entertainment company bought 46 acres from the McKinney Economic Development Corp. for the project. The city will reimburse the $35 million price tag to Roth once the venue opens, according to the development agreement.
The amphitheater site is adjacent to the Sheraton McKinney Hotel, northeast of U.S. Route 75 and State Highway 121. The facility is being built through a public-private partnership between Venu, the City of McKinney, the McKinney EDC and the McKinney Community Development Corp.
The project aligns with McKinney’s vision to expand its entertainment options for its growing population. The city, which ranked as one of the nation’s fastest-growing cities in 2022, was chosen over other places in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro for several reasons, including pro-business leadership, high visibility along U.S. 75 and SH 121 and strong consumer demographics.
The amphitheater will be a year-round venue, featuring a capacity of 20,000 people, 295 luxury fire pit suites, 350 premium memberships and 5,100 parking spaces. Roth plans to finalize the venue’s show schedule in early 2026 and host the first concert on June 1, 2026.
“While some grandparents might not ever step foot in that venue, that [amphitheater] will create a vibrancy that will keep their grandkids here,” Roth said.
A key differentiator for Sunset Amphitheater is its unique investment model. Instead of simply selling premium seating, fire pit suites function as real estate investments, Roth said. Buyers of these suites can secure a small ownership stake in the venue as well as lifetime ticket access and a source of rental income, earning an estimated 15%-19% return on their investment.
Prices for the fire pit suites range from a one-time cost of $295,000 to $800,000, while premium memberships are priced at $150,000. On the other end of the spectrum, general tickets could start around $25, depending on the event.
Pre-sales for fire pit suites began last summer and are proceeding briskly — 60 are left out of the original 295, Roth said.
“Think of a fire pit suite as a triple net real estate investment,” Roth said.
The venue has not yet secured a naming rights sponsor but discussions are ongoing with several companies, with a decision expected by early fall.
The facility recently announced a partnership with NFL Hall of Famer and Dallas Cowboys legend Troy Aikman. Aikman is an investor in Venu and the entertainment company has also taken a stake in his beer brand, Eight, which will be served at the amphitheater.
Discussions for the partnership began in 2023 and the two sides invested in each other’s companies in 2024. The premium suites at Sunset Amphitheater are called the “Aikman Club.”
“I wanted to partner with [Aikman] and his company because it fits who we are,” Roth said. “Troy is a great person [and] what you see is what you get. At the end of the day, his businesses are very reflective of who we are.”
Once completed, Sunset Amphitheater should host about 70 concerts annually, featuring a diverse lineup of events similar to Red Rocks Amphitheater and the Ford Amphitheater in Colorado. The venue will also be used for community events, school graduations and comedy shows.
Roth said he had a modest upbringing where live music was seen as a luxury.
“I usually had to climb a fence to go to a concert,” he said.
Despite the high-priced premium suites, he said he wants to build Sunset Amphitheater for a wide range of people, “so that you can go enjoy a great show with a fantastic vibe, regardless of your economic ability to buy a ticket.”
Last year, the McKinney EDC predicted that the amphitheater could attract up to 700,000 people a year and bring in annual sales of nearly $100 million. Over a decade, the project is anticipated to create more than 1,300 jobs and generate an economic impact of roughly $3 billion.
Roth said he is not seeking additional projects in DFW.
McKinney, located about 30 miles north of Dallas, has added more than 19,000 residents in the past five years, according to the city’s website. It’s attracted huge neighborhoods and major mixed-use developments and is now seeing more entertainment options pop up, including a planned mixed-use project with a surf lagoon and a semi-pro soccer team expected to make its debut this year.
In addition to the amphitheater in McKinney, Venu is currently developing multimillion-dollar entertainment facilities in El Paso, Tulsa and Oklahoma City. However, the facility in Collin County will be the largest in the company’s portfolio.
