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McKinney officials outline three new cell tower projects for Southwest McKinney, stress limits of city authority
Summary
City staff told the McKinney City Council that three telecommunications structures are planned or under construction in Southwest McKinney, but emphasized that cell service is provided by private carriers and coverage improvements are not guaranteed until carriers install antennas.
McKinney development staff told the City Council on Feb. 5 that three new telecommunications structures are under construction or in review for Southwest McKinney and described timelines for when those sites could provide colocated service.
Michael Quint, executive director of Development Services, said the projects include an elevated storage tank on Stacy Road that will allow colocation up to about 40 feet and should be open for colocations in early 2026; a roughly 215-foot “stealth” tower at TPC Craig Ranch that staff estimated could be operational in April 2025; and a site adjacent to the Craig Ranch STAR Center that is under review and expected to come before the Planning & Zoning Commission later this month and the City Council in the first meeting in March, with construction estimated in August.
Quint emphasized that the city does not control carrier decisions. “Cell coverage is not a city service,” he said. “It is a private utility, much like your home's gas, electric, telephone.” He added that seeing a tower does not guarantee service improvement for any individual resident because carriers must install their own antennas and equipment on a tower before coverage improves.
Quint said the Craig Ranch tower is a stealth design — described as an obelisk-style monolith — that will hide antennas inside the structure; cabinets holding carrier equipment will be screened at ground level. He also said the city has seen a permit application for AT&T on the TPC Craig Ranch tower but had not yet seen permits from other carriers.
Council members said they have heard residents’ reports that coverage maps do not match on-the-ground experience and urged staff to use city-owned property where appropriate to expedite coverage. The council asked staff to investigate ways to incentivize or facilitate deployment in demonstrated coverage gaps; Quint said the city can issue requests for qualifications (RFQs), enter ground leases with carriers and that the city will receive lease payments for the STAR Center site.
Quint traced part of the recent increase in tower activity to the City’s Unified Development Code adopted in November 2022, which allows low-rise telecommunications structures (about 40 feet and under) and many “stealth” configurations by right in every zoning district; towers above 40 feet still require a Specific Use Permit and Planning & Zoning and City Council review.
Council members recounted past attempts to fill gaps — including a privately contracted project intended for a MEDC-owned parking deck that did not proceed — and said they want staff to return with city-held options where those can remove barriers to deployment.
Quint and council members did not provide a citywide timetable for full mitigation of coverage gaps. He recommended residents contact their carriers to ask whether providers plan to colocate on a new site if they want to know whether their service will improve.
The presentation and discussion occupied the work session; the council did not take a formal vote on cellular policy at the Feb. 5 meeting.
