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McKinney planner outlines neighborhood outreach, preservation and pilot marker program for East McKinney
Summary
City neighborhood planner Tori Brown described outreach, research and pilot programs aimed at protecting East McKinney's legacy neighborhoods, including bilingual community events, a creek cleanup that removed 2,480 pounds of litter and a pilot Texas historical marker effort focused on historically Black and Hispanic sites.
Tori Brown, neighborhood planner for the City of McKinney, presented the city's approach to neighborhood planning for East McKinney on June 5, outlining outreach, research and preservation projects intended to protect legacy neighborhoods from development pressures.
Brown told the Historic Preservation Advisory Board that the neighborhood planner position was created from the East McKinney preservation study and the 2023 East McKinney Neighborhood Preservation Plan and now sits in the historic preservation and downtown development team so the role can coordinate with development review, preservation, and downtown staff.
The presentation described four main program areas: relationship building, public education and outreach, internal staff education and targeted special projects. Brown highlighted a bilingual East McKinney community conversation held in March 2025 that brought 15 city departments and three community partners to a single outreach event, and said the city is launching a historic marker pilot aimed at under-told Black and Hispanic sites.
Brown said the city's volunteer and partnership work recently removed 2,480 pounds of litter from a creek running through the Lewisville and Loma neighborhoods, an effort coordinated with Mary Abercrombie, the city's environmental outreach and engagement coordinator, and volunteers from Garney construction. "By working with community partners we are able to amplify our efforts and complete more work in less time," Brown said.
Brown also described programming over the past year including a Black History presentation, a Hispanic/Latino history presentation, downtown walking tours, school and adult planning workshops, participation at a generational-wealth/homeownership community day, and a staff cultural awareness series held during Historic Preservation Month to educate city employees about East McKinney's history.
On special projects Brown cited work on a recommended accessory dwelling unit (ADU) program to provide small secondary units on existing residential lots, and a new historic marker project focused on specific pilot sites: the original Holy Family school at 500 Throckmorton and the original Doty (Dodie) High School site, with research and state-level marker applications planned. She described the marker work as a city-led pilot that departs from past practice in which commissions or nonprofits applied for markers.
Board members asked about mapping and the historic resource survey: staff said a new GIS analyst has been hired and the department plans to publish survey photos by the end of the summer and follow with priority ratings and Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) links.
Residents and board members praised the outreach approach. Andrea Nichols of the Lehi neighborhood and Beth Bentley of the Legacy Keepers of Old East McKinney took part in staff programs described in Brown's presentation. "These moments are essential for making sure East McKinney residents not only feel informed but also feel heard," Brown said.
Brown closed by saying the work is incremental and relationship driven: "I do see change happening and maybe it's slow, but it sure is meaningful," she told the board.
The presentation led to board discussion about next steps on mapping, historic-marker priorities and continuing bilingual outreach. Brown said more public programs are expected now that staffing has improved and that she will provide event notices to board members as they are scheduled.
