McKinney City Council members voted 3-2 to approve the item at a March 5 meeting, with Mayor George Fuller and council member Michael Jones absent from the meeting. Despite earning a majority approval from council members present at the meeting, approval of the request would have required four affirmative votes, representing a majority of the seven-person council, city staff confirmed.
Officials from Zipline and Walmart are looking to move the project forward through continued consideration by city officials.
"Walmart is grateful for the opportunity to present this exciting opportunity to city leaders and staff," said Ivan Jaime, director of government and public affairs for Walmart, in an emailed statement. "We look forward to continued discussions with the city and to bringing this innovative service to our customers in McKinney."
The gist
The zoning change was a request to allow drone delivery as an accessory usage at Walmart located at 2041 Redbud Blvd. The proposal features a fenced-off pad with nine drone charging stations and two loading docks located on the east side of the existing store, according to city documents.
The McKinney Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recommended approval of the request during a Feb. 11 meeting, and city staff also recommended approval.
“We think it’s a great opportunity to see this type of development on the existing Walmart site,” Director of Planning Jennifer Arnold said of the city staff’s recommendation.
At the March 5 council meeting, Mayor Pro Tem Geré Feltus as well as council members Patrick Cloutier and Justin Beller voted in favor of approving the request, while council members Charlie Philips and Rick Franklin voted against the item.
The details
The proposal would have enabled Zipline Drone Delivery and Logistics, a California-based company that is partnering with Walmart, to offer the delivery service in McKinney.
The delivery system would consist of the drone and a delivery droid, which lowers a customer’s order on a tether, Zipline Project Manager Stefanie Cooke said. The drone has a three-foot delivery radius, and customers can choose where their deliveries would land. At launch, deliveries would have been offered to customers within a two-miles radius, Cooke said, but the drones have the capacity to deliver up to a 10-mile radius with payloads up to 8 pounds.
“We’re not replacing people’s weekly grocery shop, it’s really [for] ... top up items,” Cooke said.
Cooke said that other benefits of the service include reducing traffic generated by grocery deliveries via car, improved accessibility to grocery items and decreased wait times for grocery deliveries. Sound emitted from the drone ranges from about 50 to 65 decibels, which is equivalent to the noise of car traffic about 300 feet away, according to a presentation at the meeting.
“[Customers] want their products, they want it now, and this is a really cool way to get it to them,” said Ryan Trimble, vice president of Allyn Media, representing Walmart at the meeting. “You take cars off the road, you get it to them fast and it’s really unique. We’re excited to be a part of this community and provide it to your residents.”
Trimble also said the deliveries would take place during daylight hours, and exact times could fluctuate to reflect seasonal changes in daylight hours.
Quote of note
“Zipline safely makes a delivery every 60 seconds and has autonomously flown 100 million commercial miles which is the equivalent of driving every road in America 24 times with a spotless driving record,” Cooke said in an emailed statement. “We remain optimistic about this project and look forward to working with the city to save residents and businesses time, and reduce traffic with fast, quiet and safe delivery.”
The context
Drone delivery technology is expected to expand in North Texas, Cooke said. The company started delivering blood and other medical supplies in Rwanda in 2016, she added. The company began expanding its services across Asia and Europe, eventually making its way to the United States.
Zipline is located in California but recently opened a facility in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Cooke said. In November, McKinney City Council approved updates to the development code to allow drone delivery as an accessory use.
What they’re saying
Feltus expressed support for the project, saying that it would help make McKinney a “more connected and future-ready community.”
“McKinney must embrace innovation to stay competitive and improve residents’ quality of life. Utilizing drone technology will help [reduce] traffic congestion, by cutting down the number of delivery vehicles on our roads,” Feltus said in an email statement. “By embracing this technology, McKinney positions itself as a forward-thinking city that welcomes smart, sustainable solutions.”
Feltus said she would like to see the item be reconsidered when the full council is present.
McKinney resident Ken Frado expressed opposition to the request at the meeting, citing concerns for conflicts between the drones and operations at McKinney National Airport. Franklin said that while he voted against the request, he is not entirely opposed to it but rather has concerns about the safety of the drone service.
“I’m still not convinced that it's safe technology, having these drones flying over houses,” Franklin said. “I just had some apprehension. I’m not totally against it, I understand that we have technology and everything that’s coming, I just have a real concern on public safety.”
