A multibillion-dollar mini-Venice — complete with canals and a massive lagoon — could one day fill an empty field in the northern Dallas-Fort Worth suburbs.It would be a dream come true for 68-year-old developer Jeff Blackard, a man known in real estate circles for his obsession with Old World villages. The Marco could be his crowning achievement.
Blackard Cos. is seeking rezoning approval from Prosper officials for The Marco, a 143-acre project inspired by the major Italian city, at the northeast corner of the Dallas North Tollway and U.S. 380. The town’s zoning commission recommended approval of the project last month, and the request will go before Prosper’s town council in late September.
