McKinney’s Planning and Zoning Commission voted to recommend approval of the zoning request during a Sept. 23 meeting. The commission’s recommendation will be forwarded to McKinney City Council for final action Oct. 21.
The overview
The applicant, Endeavor Real Estate Group, is proposing new zoning on 10.9 acres of land to allow for multifamily residential uses, according to a city document. The land is located near the intersection of McKinney Ranch Parkway and Collin McKinney parkway.
Endeavor officials are also seeking two modifications to McKinney’s typical development standards for multifamily development:
- A reduction in adjacency landscape buffer from 20 feet to 5 feet
- An increase in maximum density from 30 units per acre to 31 units per acre
If approved by council, the landscape buffer would be reduced on the east and west sides of the property where it is adjacent with a utility substation and another multifamily development, according to the document.
The applicant is proposing several site enhancements in order to offset potential negative impacts of the requested zoning and modifications. Enhancements include construction of an 8-foot-tall masonry wall and an increase in the number of amenities from five to seven.
City staff are recommending approval of the proposed zoning, according to the document.
The property is currently zoned for single-family residential uses and is located south of another single-family neighborhood. Land to the west is zoned for multifamily development, and land to the east is zoned for agricultural uses. Land to the south is zoned for commercial uses but is currently undeveloped.
“Staff finds the proposed multifamily use to be consistent with the surrounding development patterns,” City Planner Stewart Starry said. “The applicant has demonstrated responsiveness to adjacency concerns by incorporating meaningful mitigation measures, particularly along shared boundaries with single-family residential.”
What the applicant is saying
Zach Johnston, principal with the Endeavor Real Estate Group, broke down plans for the development during the meeting.
Developers had initially requested an increase in maximum density to 33 units per acre, but initial plans show a smaller increase was needed, according to Johnston’s presentation. There are currently plans for 336 apartment units in total, which measures out to nearly 31 units per acre.
Those units will be spread across three buildings on the property, according to the presentation. Two buildings on the north side of the property are planned to be three stories tall, and the building on the south side is planned to be four stories tall, Johnston said.
Johnston referred to nearby developments such as the Cannon Beach Surf and Adventure park project, the Sunset Amphitheater, and the JW Marriott Resort hotel as job producers in the area.
“As an apartment developer, we always look for jobs,” he said. “Jobs create demand for our product, and we want to be clustered next to generators that are producing jobs.”
