Less country club, more clubhouse: The story behind Stonethrow Club and the families shaping it

After exploring more than 100 social clubs, Nick Clark and Dawson Williams finally realized what Lake Highlands is missing, a family club. Stonethrow Club, a membership-based family social experience, planned for 10405 E. Northwest Highway, could break ground later this month.

After leaving Common Desk in January 2024, Clark reached out to Williams about creating a program that was designed around placemaking, memberships and one audience. Luckily for both former co-workers, the audience they were looking for was not too hard to find.

“Dawson has a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old boy, and I have a 10-year-old boy and an almost 2-year-old daughter, and we’re two dads,” Clark says. “How magical would it be if we could build something for our families?”

With this goal in mind, the pair traveled to London that same year and toured over 100 clubs over a four-month period. After returning home, they thought that the country clubs around town were incredibly expensive and felt more like a grown-up experience.

So they came up with a question: What if we went out and developed a private club that’s for families only?

Their initial concept of creating a club centered around sizing down country club amenities to make it more affordable evolved as they spoke with prospective members. Williams says the founders conducted more than 600 hours of interviews with nearly 1,800 parents and 24 older children to better understand what families wanted.

“Our audience taught us that instead of a ‘boutique country club,’ what they really want is the world’s greatest family resort that they can go to every day,” Williams says.

The founders began the zoning process in mid-2024, and the Dallas City Council approved a perpetual special use permit for the property in January 2025.

The project will repurpose an existing 50,000-square-foot medical office building that dates back to 1967. The 3.65-acre property will be redesigned to accommodate the club’s planned amenities, including a family restaurant, indoor play areas and a resort-style pool. Additionally, the site will include about 200 parking spaces.

Comprising three floors, the first floor will include a restaurant, a living room-style gathering space with an indoor jungle gym, a nursery and access to outdoor amenities. Plans also call for a resort-style pool with a separate splash area for toddlers. The second floor, totaling around 15,000 square feet, will feature an adult social club with a cocktail bar, lounge areas and private dining spaces.

“The third floor, which is also about 15,000 square feet, is for the kiddos,” Clark says. “Our child watch staff will be here. Once a child is at the age of 6, child watch will be free, and the children will get checked into the rest of the third floor where our Playmakers will be.”

Clark describes Playmakers as “spirited camp counselors” who help children over the age of 6 invent new games and fun ways to play.

“I think the modern parent is more conscious of the environments they are putting their kids in than ever before,” Williams says. “They want to know the child safety policies that are in place, they want to get to know the childcare staff to make sure they can trust them, and they want their kids to have a blast.”

While construction is pending, Stonethrow has been organizing events and activities to help families connect before the clubhouse opens. Currently, 800 families have signed up and paid their initiation fees for the club.
Clark says the first membership round, which launched in May 2025, carried a $1,000 initiation fee. The fee then increased to $2,000 in fall 2025 and now stands at $3,500.

“We’ve gone through a couple of different membership rounds trying to reward the families that took a little bet on us and jumped into this thing early,” Clark says. “Currently, (the initiation fee) is at $3,500, and upon opening, we believe it’ll be closer to $8,000.”

Clark says the club would like to keep the initiation fee under $10,000 and keep dues at around $500 a month.

Ginni Rickerson, the club’s membership experience coordinator, says the team has hosted events including a daddy-daughter dance, breakfast with Santa, family service projects, playdates and gatherings for members with shared interests.

“This summer, we launched our first kids swim team, hosted Private Pool Saturdays for our members and more recently shared tennis drills with a local pro,” Rickerson says.

For members, Stonethrow’s appeal extends beyond its planned amenities.

Meredith Smyly, a Lake Highlands resident of three years, says she first learned about the club through a close friend who asked if she had applied to be a founding member.

“We had been interested in finding ways to plug into the community, such as meeting others who shared similar interests and hobbies,” Smyly says. “My husband has enjoyed meeting with other dads at the Stonethrow golf events.”

As the club prepares to open, she says she looks forward to seeing the families she’s met at Stonethrow Club events again and continuing to build friendships.

“The amenities are such a perk, but the community aspect is what makes Stonethrow unique and one of a kind,” she says.

Abby Lathrop and her husband Matt moved to Dallas in 2020 and have been intentional about building a support system for themselves and their 2-year-old son, Sullivan. The couple is also expecting a daughter in February.

“We want (our kids) to grow up in a place where people know their names, and familiar faces become friends,” Lathrop says. “The idea of having one place that can be part of so many aspects of our family’s life is incredibly appealing to us.”

“We aren’t looking for perfect families,” Rickerson says. “We are looking for great families who are trying to do the best they can in the season of life they are in and who want to do it alongside other families who value community and connection.”