"We know this may be hard to hear — because this isn't just any store. It's your coffeehouse, a place woven into your daily rhythm." That letter went up on the door of the Snider Plaza Starbucks at 6733 Hillcrest Avenue in late September. People Newspapers reported that by September 28, the store no longer showed up on Starbucks' website.
The closure came from a company-wide decision. In a September 24 letter, Starbucks COO Mike Grams announced about 250 closures across North America, roughly 1% of the company's more than 18,000 stores there, at locations where the company did not "see a path to acceptable financial performance." The timing still lines up with something bigger. The city's rebuild of Snider Plaza ended with a ribbon cutting on November 30, 2025. In the ten months since, the plaza has gained businesses designed for long visits, lost a to-go coffee counter, given up its holiday tree lighting, and started an interim employee-parking setup while its formal parking district waits for January.
What the City Actually Built
The University Park newsletter for January 2026 says the improvements project was finished in 2025, with new pavement, a new fountain, sidewalks, lighting, and landscaping. The city's project FAQ has the numbers behind that list. The plan added 41,500 square feet of sidewalk, 18,500 square feet of landscaping, and 83 trees. Installing ADA-compliant parking spaces, sidewalks, and curb ramps removed 22 parking spaces.
Parking shaped the design more than anything else. The plan originally called for a family-oriented green area. After a series of public hearings, the city dropped those greenspaces so parking could be restored, and the City Council approved a plan where landscaping takes no parking spaces at all. The last piece of the project was realigning the intersection of Hillcrest and Daniel and adding pavers to make the crossing safer for pedestrians near SMU.
So the plaza ended up with a lot more walking room and slightly less curb parking. The businesses that opened afterward suit that layout.
The Tenants That Signed On to the New Plaza
Sueño Cocteleria Mexicana, 6600 Snider Plaza, Suite 100. This is the second location for a modern Mexican concept from Richardson, opened in partnership with The Bellomy Group, the family company behind S&D Oyster Co., Rex's Seafood, and Caché. PaperCity reported a planned June 10 opening date. People Newspapers confirmed it was open by July 2. The restaurant takes up 6,259 square feet, and its layout is based on traditional haciendas. Masa is made in the front window, the kitchen cooks over live fire, and the patio is designed as a shaded courtyard. Inside is an intimate tequila lounge called Alma Agave. Co-founder Cristian Lujano described the plan as "how the experience unfolds for our guests." The ceiling installation was woven from Zebu leather by Oaxacan artist Adriana Monterrubio.
KILO Coffee, 6600 Snider Plaza, Suite 110. KILO is next door to Sueño at the south end of the plaza near Daniel Avenue, and it held its grand opening over Labor Day weekend. Its main draw is a single-origin slow bar, with roasts from Kenya, China, Colombia, and California. The Dallas Observer singled out one of the "standard" drinks, a Bergamot Earl Grey Espresso Tonic.
Parlor's Ice Creams, 6722 Snider Plaza. This one hasn't opened yet. The Lakewood shop's location page still says "Coming Fall 2026!" for Snider Plaza and "Coming soon!" for hours. A Shops at Snider Plaza post had earlier projected late summer, so that target has passed without an opening.
Kuby's, the European market and restaurant that Karl Kuby opened in Dallas in 1961, is still open at 6601 Snider Plaza from Monday through Saturday. Snarf's Sandwiches is open daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. at 6630 Snider Plaza.
None of the three newcomers runs mainly on grab-and-go orders. Another Park Cities shopping center has commented on that kind of fit before. When the Highland Park Village Starbucks closed in 2023, the center's chief marketing officer, Victoria Snee, said Starbucks had moved toward "more to-go and mobile orders, which isn't conducive to our shopping environment." Starbucks hasn't said why it picked the Snider Plaza store, so that quote explains Highland Park Village and only Highland Park Village. If you're looking for an espresso nearby, White Rock Coffee and KILO are both still in the plaza, and the nearest Starbucks is at 6407 Hillcrest Avenue.
The Fountain That Sent the Tree Lighting Back to Centennial Park
The new fountain changed the holidays, too. In December 2025, the city explained that the redesigned fountain, ADA ramps, sidewalks, and parking layout left no practical spot for the usual single large tree, so four 12-foot blue spruces went up around the fountain instead. The 2025 event combined the ribbon cutting with music, photos with Santa, ice skating, and a snow slide, and the evening finished with all four trees lighting up.
At an August 18 work session, city staff told the City Council the tree lighting would move back to Centennial Park this year. People Newspapers reported that staff also discussed adding food trucks and choosing between a live and an artificial tree, and that the city still plans to decorate Snider Plaza, fountain included. The city calendar confirms the event for Sunday, November 29, 3 to 7 p.m., at Centennial Park, 3800 University Boulevard. If your family has gone to the plaza for this in past years, the event is about a mile west this time. The lights will still be on Snider Plaza.
Game Days Still Run Up Hillcrest
The rebuilt Hillcrest and Daniel corner sits right where SMU game-day crowds pass. In its September 2026 newsletter, the city reminded residents that the Owen Arts Center is SMU's official rideshare drop-off and pickup spot again. On game days, the outside northbound lane of Hillcrest between Shenandoah and Granada closes, and all northbound traffic moves to the inside lane. The newsletter also says fireworks will go off from both end zones this season, so home games will be louder.
SMU's parking page reminds fans that University Park and Highland Park have resident-only parking areas near campus and that cars without a resident or guest permit may be ticketed. It sends visitors to the city's SMU-area parking district map. If friends are joining you for a game, check the map before you hand out guest permits.
Four home games are left on the SMU schedule:
- Saturday, October 17 vs. Virginia, 11 a.m. CT
- Saturday, October 24 vs. Cal, time TBD
- Friday, November 6 vs. Virginia Tech, 6 p.m. CT
- Saturday, November 14 vs. Wake Forest, time TBD
The Parking District Formally Starts January 1
The parking change matters most for everyday trips, and so far only part of it is running. On May 19, 2026, the University Park City Council approved Ordinance 26-023 creating the Snider Plaza Public Improvement District. The district's service plan says employee parking has filled high-demand customer spaces "for many years," added to cars circling for spots, and spilled onto nearby residential streets. It also notes that the 2007 Snider/Hillcrest Strategic Plan had already named a PID as one way to pay for leased parking.
The PID's main job is moving long-term employee parking out of the plaza. It will use parking at Hilltop Plaza, where the city has an agreement for up to 100 spaces, and the city-owned lot at 3420 Rankin. The city bought the Rankin property, just west of the plaza, to build a 53-space surface lot.
Here's how the funding works:
- Who pays: 45 participating properties inside the district, which generally covers the plaza south of Rankin Street
- Proposed rate: $0.15 per $100 of assessed value
- First-year estimate: about $195,002 in net assessment revenue, with the city adding transitional support that shrinks over the first several years
- Oversight: a PID Policy Board made up of property owners, merchants, and residents, with the City Council keeping final authority
- Term: ten years, starting January 1, 2027
At the time of this writing, the city's employee-parking request form describes Snider Plaza construction as complete and offers eligible employees space in the new Rankin lot, depending on approval and availability. The city is also considering other options. At the same August work session, the council discussed applying for an Uber grant of up to $50,000 for an on-demand ride program for retail employees, with the city covering a 10% match. Council members questioned whether DART's GoLink service should already be doing that job, and the council decided to keep studying the Uber partnership.
That means the plaza you visit this fall has the new sidewalks, trees, and fountain, plus Sueño and KILO, and employees can already apply for spots in the Rankin lot. What changes on January 1 is that the PID's assessment-funded program takes over, using Hilltop Plaza and Rankin, with the stated goals of more open customer spaces and faster turnover in front of the shops.
Parking rules, a moved holiday event, and new businesses arriving shape what nearby homes are like to live in, and that eventually affects how homes near the plaza sell. If you're thinking about selling or buying near Snider Plaza and want to know how changes like these come up in that conversation, Chris Holmes-Hill is happy to walk through it with you over coffee at whichever plaza café you pick. Let's Connect.
