The development would also feature a hotel, six-story office buildings and various outdoor amenities on a 146-acre site that is also adjacent to the existing US 75, according to city documents. The project, dubbed McKinney Northgate, is a proposal by Dallas-based real estate firm Creation Equity.
Project representatives requested a rezoning for the site that would redefine the development standards of the current Planned Development zoning type to accommodate the project and enable the construction of multifamily residences, city documents state. The McKinney Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recommended approval of a rezoning request for the project at a March 11 meeting, but final action on the request is expected to come from McKinney City Council at a future meeting.
The specifics
The project site is located at the northwest corner of the future intersection of US 75 and the planned US 380 bypass, city documents show. The project, which is divided into four tracts separated by the intersection of Laud Howell Parkway and Trinity Falls Parkway, is slated to include:
- 1,500 multifamily units in various styles
- 135,000-square-feet of retail space, including an anchor grocery store
- 318,600-square-feet of office space
- A 100-room hotel
- A central parking structure with 910 spaces
“The footprint you see laid out on the rendering is about 67,000-square-foot, so think like a Tom Thumb type of footprint,” Bez said. “If we get a larger footprint grocer, like a Kroger for instance, where they’re going to need 120,000-square-feet, we can actually turn that whole tract into commercial if we need to and do a larger format grocer.”
The retail space within the development will feature a variety of businesses including restaurants, entertainment, fitness centers and other shopping establishments. The retail areas are also designed to be walkable and concentrated within the parts of the development closest to US 75, the presentation states.
“This is going to be a place for people in the surrounding neighborhoods, Trinity Falls, Honey Creek, to come and stay, and we were really thoughtful about programming this area with open spaces,” Bez said, noting that the project plan features a central lawn, open spaces and various patios within the retail core on the southeastern tract of the project.
The southeast tract will also feature two office buildings that are at least six-stories tall and span over 300,000-square-feet, Bez said. The space around the office buildings will include integrated amenities and pocket parks, and the offices will also be adjacent to a 910-space parking structure.
Tommy Mann, a project representative and shareholder at Texas-based law firm Winstead, said the office buildings could serve as a corporate campus and that the developers are looking to create facilities that would attract a corporate relocation.
“It’s [US] 75 and [US] 380; with that much parking, that much scale opportunity, this represents one of the best corporate campus opportunities in [Dallas-Fort Worth],” Bez said.
A 100-room hotel will also be adjacent to the office buildings, and is intended to support the eventual users of the office space. The hotel brand has not been determined, but Bez said the type of hotel that will be constructed is flexible and dependent on the development of the surrounding uses.
Diving in deeper
Housing planned within the development are all multifamily uses, but also range in development style, according to the presentation. Residences planned for tract 1 at the northwest corner of the intersection would be developed in a traditional multifamily style and feature 300 units, while residences planned for tract 2 on the southwest corner include 180 brownstone-style homes that range from two- to three-stories tall, each featuring a two-car garage.
“This is an awesome product type for renters that just aren’t quite ready for a down payment, but they want to live in McKinney,” Bez said of the brownstone-style residences.
Residences planned for tract 3 include 450 urban-style multifamily units, and another 750 units in the same style are planned for tract 4, according to the presentation. The unit mix for the urban-style multifamily residences has not been determined yet, but Bez said he expects about 60% of the units to be studios and one-bedroom units, while the remaining 40% will be two- and three-bedroom units.
The proposed development regulations would require 20,000-square-feet of non-residential uses, such as retail space, to be in development prior to any multifamily units being developed on tracts 3 and 4, according to city documents.
The project will also include various linear parks, pocket parks and green spaces throughout, as well as pedestrian trails that will connect to city trail systems, according to the presentation. Mann compared the site to various other Dallas-Fort Worth area developments including the Alma Road and SH 121 intersection in McKinney featuring District 121 and Hub 121; Watters Creek in Allen; and the intersection of I-635 and the Dallas North Tollway in Dallas.
Quote of note
The development is intended to be an urban neighborhood with a focus on walkability, city documents state.
“It’s going to feel ... like a truly urban environment, which is what we were going for as we designed the program,” Bez said of the project.
Looking ahead
The project is proposed to be developed in multiple phases, Mann said, noting that he expects tracts one and three to develop first.
“We’ve had a lot of interest from grocers already, and we’re confident that once they see the critical mass is in motion, they’re going to like that site,” he said.
While the exact project timeline has not been determined, the project could take six to 10 years to see substantial development completed, Mann said. McKinney City Council members are expected to hear the item at a March 31 meeting and will have an opportunity then to take final action on the rezoning request.
