Dreien Opportunity Partners is the redeveloper behind The Campus at Legacy West and Parkland Hospital — and the Dallas developer headed by Sam Ware has its sights on Collin Creek Mall.

Dreien has the 1.1M SF Collin Creek Mall under contract with a title company and plans to close the deal by the end of 2017, the Dallas Business Journal reports. Redevelopment plans, which include using the creek as the centerpiece of the project, will run about $1B. 

The bank-owned mall has sat mostly empty for years as e-commerce took its toll on the aging shopping center. Though Plano officials have repeated the hope that it will be redeveloped, it has sat in limbo.

Avison Young has been leading a marketing campaign on behalf of special servicer Midland Plc. Avison Young Senior Vice President Mike Kennedy said Dreien beat out the global competition because of his local background, vision and ability to get deals financed.

The 93-acre site is anchored by JC Penney, Sears and Amazing Jake’s Food & Fun. The mall has more than 50 empty storefronts. Dreien is working to acquire an additional six acres on adjacent parcels. 

Ware is looking for a major corporate tenant to begin redevelopment. Ware said he wants to work in tandem with the city in a public-private partnership. County tax appraisal value of the site is around $50M. 

Plano Mayor Harry LaRosiliere has said the redevelopment could help extend Plano’s downtown district from Alma Drive to Central Expressway and Plano Parkway and 15th Street. 

Dallas-based Gateway Planning is designing the master plan, which could include a bike trail system and connection with Richardson’s CityLine. Jackson Walker's Bill Dahlstrom is discussing land use with city officials. 

"We've become known for these kinds of deals because we can see what these properties can become, not what they are," Ware told the DBJ. 

A JC Penney anchor seems likely in the redevelopment, given that it is one of the mall’s most successful tenants, and Dreien owns Penney’s headquarters at the Campus at Legacy West.

In the short term, Ware will bring in temporary tenants and make operational adjustments to the mall before kicking off redevelopment. 

A few miles south of Collin Creek Mall, Scott Beck’s Beck Ventures recently started demolition on Dallas’ Valley View Mall. The former shopping center will be redeveloped into a $4B mixed-use project.

CORRECTION, Aug. 17, 11:51 A.M. ET: A previous version had an incorrect title for Mike Kennedy. The story has been updated.