McKinney residents are now able to drive golf carts on any roadway within the city of McKinney with a speed limit of 35 miles per hour or less.

The ordinance governing golf cart usage on city roadways was updated at a Nov. 19 McKinney City Council meeting, where council members voted unanimously to approve the ordinance change as part of the meeting's consent agenda.

Council members also voted on other projects planned throughout the city, including a new multifamily residential development and an industrial facility project.

The gist

The ordinance change allows for the operation of golf carts on select streets and highways that:

• Are within the city’s corporate boundaries
• Have a posted speed limit of 35 mile per hour or less

Golf carts being operated on city roadways are required to have all safety equipment required by state law, including headlamps, taillamps, reflectors, mirrors and a parking brake. The decision comes following a discussion at a Sept. 17 council work session meeting where the ordinance change was considered.

Prior to the change, golf carts were only able to operate on McKinney roadways under two circumstances, including:

• Within a master-planned community
• When traveling to and from a golf course within 5 miles during the daytime and on a street with a maximum posted speed of 35 mph

Three community members and multiple City Council members spoke in support of the ordinance change at the Sept. 17 meeting, with some citing the desire to operate golf carts around downtown McKinney.

“I like having [golf carts] in downtown,” City Council member Justin Beller said. “They seem to slow traffic down a little bit on a lot of our streets.”

Police Chief Joe Ellenburg said there is a safety risk associated with operating golf carts on roadways.

“I believe the police department's stance on golf carts, if driven compatible with state law, has really been focused solely on the safety issue,” Ellenburg said. “Golf carts do not fare well when they have a collision or wreck, or they’re hit by a motor vehicle.”

Also on the agenda

Council members also voted on two other projects planned throughout the city.

A new multifamily development is planned for a 15.7-acre tract at the southeast corner of Wilmeth Road and Community Avenue. A request was presented to rezone the site, which was previously a mix of multifamily and commercial zoning, to a planned development district that would allow for multifamily development.The new zoning district would allow for the development of as many as 460 units, which would amount to 29 units per acre. The rezoning request also included a variance request to allow for a modified parking ratio, changing the requirement from 2 parking spots per one unit to 1.75 parking spots per one unit.

The request was considered and amended multiple times since first being presented to Planning and Zoning Commission in October 2023, city documents state. The rezoning request was recommended by city staff as well as Planning and Zoning Commission members, and was approved by council in a 6-1 vote, with council member Charlie Philips voting against the item.

An industrial development is planned for a 143-acre site to the east of McDonald Street, just north of McIntyre Road. A rezoning request by the developer asked to rezone the property from an agriculture and planned development zoning district to a light industrial zoning district. A conceptual site plan for the tract depicts six buildings on the site that would include over one million square feet of warehouse space.The rezoning request was recommended by city staff as well as Planning and Zoning Commission members, and was approved by unanimously approved by council members at the meeting

Looking ahead

The next McKinney City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 3.

A work session meeting will be held at 3 p.m., and will be followed by a regular council meeting at 6 p.m. City Council meetings are held at McKinney City Hall, located at 222 N. Tennessee St.

For more information on McKinney City Council meetings, visit www.mckinneytexas.org/1168/council-meetings.