A request to rezone a 62,977-square-foot piece of land where the existing Dowell House is located was denied by McKinney Planning and Zoning commissioners during a meeting Nov. 13. The house is located at 1104 S. Tennessee St., McKinney.

According to the applicant’s presentation, if approved, the existing lot will be separated into nine lots, allowing the applicant to build eight additional 6,000-square-foot single-family homes surrounding the Dowell House.

City staff recommended that commissioners deny the request because the site plan would conflict with the character of the neighborhood.

Several residents attended the meeting expressing opposition to the request, asking commissioners to deny the request to rezone until there are provisions in place that protect the home from being demolished.

The applicant said the goal would be to maintain and preserve the existing home as a marketing tool to attract potential buyers to the new homes.

However, the Dowell House is not a certified historical site, and therefore there is nothing protecting the house from being demolished at a later date if the applicant chose to do so, said Guy Giersch, historic preservation officer for the city of McKinney.

The request to rezone will be sent to McKinney City Council Dec. 4 with a negative recommendation from commissioners and city staff.