McKinney City Council voted Tuesday to modify the city's Code of Ordinances related to permitting in the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction, which is land that the city has a right to annex, but has not yet done so.

The code now reads that permits in the ETJ "shall not be required prior to the constructing, repair, renovating or remodeling of one existing or new single family residential dwelling unit, private utility service lines, or any accessory residential structures, such as a barn, residential storage shed, arbor, gazebo, or swimming pool on a single, undivided tract of land in the ETJ that is not being conveyed or created from a larger tract and that is not a platted lot of record."

This new language was approved with a vote of 4-2 with councilman Charlie Philips and councilman Chuck Branch opposed. Councilman La'Shadion Shemwell abstained.

Philips said he did not believe the city had the authority to permit in the ETJ.

Mayor George Fuller said while his beliefs are similar to Philips, he saw this language as a remedy that lets people move forward with current projects and developments in the ETJ.