Sarah Jaffe to Perform at Grand Opening for Eco-Friendly Venue Box Garden at Plano's Legacy Hall

The Box Garden, an outdoor venue at Legacy Hall in Plano, is about ready to open as a hub for live entertainment, bars and restaurants. It will seat more than 400 people, with additional standing space to hold up to 1,200. As part of the new entertainment space’s grand opening, Denton-born singer-songwriter Sarah Jaffe will perform May 18.

The visionaries behind the Box Garden are Front Burner President Jack Gibbons and Legacy Hall Vice President Pat Garza. Gibbons says the Box Garden is an extension of the vision of Legacy Hall, acting as the ultimate finish to the project. The name comes from the facility’s innovative use of repurposed shipping containers, and while these containers add to the aesthetic of the new space, they are not just for looks.

“We feel like we’re a leader, basically, in recycling and that sort of direction with our restaurants," Gibbons says. "We try to take as much of an approach to that as possible just because we believe in it. We have the no-straw agenda at Whiskey Cake.”

Gibbons and Garza also plan to turn one of the shipping boxes into a grow container. Gibbons says it will be a small organic farm that will grow hydroponic herbs and vegetables.

This self-proclaimed patio on steroids has an outdoor stage, games, and food and drink options. Gibbons and Garza wanted to create the perfect setting to enjoy happy hours, time with friends, business meetings and late-night fun. The Box Garden will include Carlton Provisions barbecue, co-owned by Chili's founder Larry Lavine; a tiki bar; Tito's Stillhouse Bar; and an Unlawful Assembly Brewing Co. outpost, according to planoprofile.com.


“[The Stillhouse] kind of represents Texas spirits," Gibbons says. "It has mules [and] different cocktails that are available. We have another shipping container that’s a margarita bar.”

The dog-friendly area is built for live music, community events, festivals and watch parties. Its staff has deep roots in the Dallas music scene, Gibbons says, and includes people who've worked for venues like Trees, the Granada and The Bomb Factory. At the end of April, the facility will also kick off a new music program.

“Everyone here is working really hard because [the grand opening] is a month away,” says Legacy Hall marketing director Gavin Mulloy. "We have to be all hands on deck."

Tim Ziegler, venue manager and talent buyer, says Legacy Hall is trying to do what Mulloy did at The Bomb Factory and the Granada Theater: make things different. For example, one event Ziegler is planning will allow people to compete in Mario Kart on the Box Garden's giant LED screen.

Gibbons says the Box Garden is different from any other entertainment project in the area.

“We really think that this is an opportunity for art companies [and] for creativity,” Gibbons says, adding that he and Garza want “to make it so different and so unique and such a fixture in the North Texas area that it’ll be the No. 1 destination for people for the next 20 years.”