Richardson's Charles W. Eisemann Center for Performing Arts and Corporate Presentations is working to stabilize its revenue following post-COVID-19 challenges and amid budget pressures that could result in cut city programs. Eisemann Center Executive Director Ally Haynes-Hamblen presented recent organizational and programming improvements as well as future revenue plans to City Council on Feb. 16.

The big picture: The Eisemann Center is city-owned and -operated. The city currently provides about $3 million a year in subsidy funds for the center, but Haynes-Hamblen said the center aims to reduce its reliance on city funding by increasing its earned and contributed revenue. With sustained growth, she said the subsidy could drop to $2 million a year.

Quote of note: “There are a number of different things that we do across our city that don’t have a break-even or a payback in the kind of way that we’d expect,” Mayor Amir Omar said. “We’ve got to figure out how that’s going to balance with everything else we’re trying to do.”

Palestinian restaurant Ayat is now open in Richardson after holding a soft opening on Feb. 7, a company representative said. This is the New York-based restaurant’s first Texas location.

Ayat serves both traditional Palestinian dishes and new takes on Middle Eastern cuisine. Popular dishes include maklouba, a six-layer “upside down” dish of chicken, rice and vegetables, as well as mansaf, a stew of bone-in lamb chunks and yogurt sauce served over sajj bread and rice.

• Opened Feb. 7
• 200 W. Spring Valley Road, Richardson

AT&T’s plan to relocate its global headquarters to Plano is moving into a new phase as city officials prepare to consider a package of economic incentives tied to the $1.35 billion redevelopment project.

What you need to know: Plano City Council will consider two economic development agreements Feb. 23 that would offer $20 million in financial incentives to AT&T in exchange for establishing the company’s global headquarters in Plano’s Legacy District. If approved, the agreements would support the redevelopment of the former Electronic Data Systems campus, marking Plano’s first major corporate headquarters redevelopment project.

Breaking it down: Under the proposed agreements, the city would offer a mix of grants, fee waivers and long-term property tax rebates. In return, AT&T would be required to build at least 2 million square feet of space and invest a minimum of $1.35 billion in construction costs, according to city documents. Additionally, AT&T would be required to occupy the new building by Dec. 31, 2029 and create, transfer or retain up to 10,000 full-time equivalent jobs.