Irving council denies rezoning for card room at Irving Mall after heated testimony from Macy’s and mall owners

The Irving City Council voted to deny a request to rezone space at Irving Mall that would have allowed a private card room and restaurant to operate on the mall property.

The council’s denial followed extended public comment both for and against the proposal and legal arguments about which zoning rules applied. The applicant’s representatives said the proposed Poker Ranch Social Club would comply with rules in effect when their application was submitted, while Macy’s and the mall’s owners warned the use would harm the family-friendly retail environment.

Attorney Ron Miller, representing the applicant, told the council that the city’s October 2024 ordinance restricting card rooms did not apply to the applicant because the application was submitted before that ordinance took effect. “Big State has met all the legal requirements to move forward with opening the proposed social club,” Miller said. He argued the proposed club met the intent of the United Development Code’s rules governing card rooms and would comply with Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission requirements if it served alcohol.

Todd Gross, who identified himself as the applicant and on-site manager, described the business model: a private social club with membership fees, hourly seat rentals, an eventual 25-table room at opening and, he said, plans to employ more than 350 people once fully staffed. “We will have more than one security guy there at a time,” Gross said, adding that staff would patrol the parking lot to improve safety.

Several tenants and a partner with ownership stakes in the mall spoke in favor, saying the use could boost foot traffic and revenues. Mark Feind, a partner in Golden Ram, said the card room could “bring in quite a few foot traffic” and help revitalize the mall. Tenant Ashish Bivani said the proposal would bring “more traffic, more revenue to the city as well as to the mall.”

Opposition was led by Macy’s representatives and attorneys for the mall. Jim Harris, an attorney with Holland & Knight representing Macy’s, said the card room “is not compatible with a mall that has retail uses and some restaurant uses in it,” and urged denial. Michael Kennedy, store manager of the Macy’s at Irving Mall, said the card room “would not keep the family friendly shopping environment that is consistent with our business model.” Joel Sharp, an attorney representing Mall at Irving LLC, similarly urged denial and said he had concerns about safety and the effect on tenants.

Council members questioned operations and regulatory matters during the hearing. Council member questioning established that the applicant proposed to operate initially when players were present and expected to move toward seven days a week, 24 hours a day as the business matured; that the club planned to charge about $13 per seat per hour and derive revenue from membership and hourly seat fees rather than from players’ pots; and that alcohol service would depend on securing a TABC license.

After public testimony and applicant rebuttal, a council member moved to deny the zoning case identified in the record as “2024Dash400Z Charlie.” The motion carried; the council recorded the case as denied.

The council did not approve the rezoning, leaving the existing mall and tenant mix unchanged and preserving current regulations governing card rooms in Irving for now.