Council members discuss city properties in downtown McKinney

“We got to the partnership negotiations and ultimately just couldn’t reach a deal,” Development Services Executive Director Michael Quint said. “So we shelved the project and I am back here now giving you an update and setting the steps for what comes next.”

In a nutshell

Quint updated council members on the current status of the properties during an Aug. 5 work session. Council members were not asked for direction yet as city staff expect to bring the item forward again at a future meeting.

“We’ll be working with you to chart a path forward in the coming weeks and months,” Quint said.

The details

Both the city hall and development services buildings are now vacant, Quint said. Staff are working with the city’s Public Works department and facilities construction manager to move forward with demolition of the properties in early 2026.

Demolition of both buildings is expected to cost $500,000 which is a “rough estimate,” Quint said. Plans are also underway to begin replacing utilities on the properties beginning in early 2026, Quint said.

City staff are working with the Texas Historical Commission to learn how to move an existing historic marker that’s currently at the former city hall, Quint said. The marker recognizes the Texas American Bank location in downtown McKinney, according to the commission.

The context

The city got through about 4.5 phases out of 6 when officials were initially pursuing redevelopment of the properties, Quint said.

Council members selected M2G Ventures to lead the redevelopment effort in early 2024. Following various public input forums, council members approved a development program for the project in late 2024 that planned for new structures on the properties.

• A six-story hotel with event and commercial space
• A five-story multifamily building with an integrated parking garage
• 12 townhomes
• A mixed-use block with commercial development such as restaurants and offices that could be as tall as five stories

Quint asked council members to think about how they wanted to proceed with the redevelopment effort. The council has a lot of options to consider for what to do with the properties.

“The options and the control is wholly up to you,” Quint said. “There are a number of ways that we could redevelop this property. There are a number of processes that we could go through.”

Council members could decide not to redevelop and lease the existing buildings, Quint said.

“We can do that if we don’t redevelop now,” he said. “We can lease those out. You retain ultimate control of the properties. The flip side is you’re not getting them back on the tax rolls and so we lose some financial impacts there.”

Council members could also consider partnering with the McKinney Economic Development Corporation or McKinney Community Development Corporation, according to Quint’s presentation. The city could also choose not to retain the property and open it up to outside developers again.

“All of those things can be evaluated going forward,” Quint said.

What they’re saying

After the presentation, council members offered comments that ranged from support for using the property to address parking needs in downtown McKinney and installing infrastructure needed to attract developers.

Council member Patrick Cloutier said it seemed the smart thing to do would be to get the infrastructure work right before marketing the properties to developers. Cloutier said he didn’t “have an appetite” for going through another request for qualifications process like the city had done previously.

“It just seems like we ought to do the work that we need to get done on the infrastructure to make it attractive to the marketplace,” he said.

Council member Justin Beller said getting the properties back on the tax roll is important. Beller also said it was valuable to ask what uses they would want to see in downtown McKinney.

“For me, I think we really have to evaluate: how do we increase daytime traffic and weekday traffic in downtown,” he said. “Then we start figuring out what are the uses that can bring that about. That’s my priority.”

Council member Michael Jones said the properties can sit but they should get those properties developer-ready. Make them flat parking lots until it’s ready for development, he said.

“I think we start moving on something now and just don’t let them sit,” he said.