The renovations at Towne Lake Park will include a raised boardwalk system with a treehouse structure, colorful lighting through the wooded walking trails, dedicated food truck lots and an outdoor amphitheater. Residents will also be able to utilize outdoor fitness courts and equipment, a splash pad and a new organicallyinspired play structure. Kowski said the McKinney Parks Department also recently received a $280,000 grant from Collin County to assist in enhancing trails in the southern portion of the park, which was previously a golf course.
The renovations are still in the concept and design phase, Kowski said. He also noted previous flooding events have caused damage and erosion to areas of the park that require multiple days of cleanup efforts by maintenance employees. The inspiration for a raised boardwalk system as a solution for withstanding flooding events came largely from Frisco’s Granite Park, Kowski said.
Estimates for the total cost of renovations are still being finalized, Kowski said. However, he is anticipating presenting a design contract for a $340,000 portion of the project on the east side of the park to the City Council on Nov. 1. This portion of the project would include building a dog park with an agility course, building a play area, establishing connections to surrounding trails and more.
The initiative for improvements at the park comes as part of the parks department’s 2017 master plan that identified 10 parks in need of improvements. Other recent improvements at Towne Lake Park include a new dock and kayak launch and renovations to the senior center. The parks department also hosted a tree planting event in November 2021 to help restore the tree canopy in the park, where volunteers planted 1,600 trees in one day.
Kowski’s presentation also noted that citywide trail expansion planning is about 90% finished. The plan includes filling gaps in trail connections, aligning trails with new roads under construction and a 25-mile trail loop around McKinney. The parks department also plans to establish regional connections to trail systems in neighboring cities.
Find out more about McKinney’s parks projects here.
Editor's note: This story has been edited to correct the park cost.
