McKinney EDC asked to fund $22.4 million of $72 million East‑side airport project to enable commercial service

Ken Carley, airport director for McKinney National Airport, told the McKinney Economic Development Corporation board on Jan. 21 that airport staff are seeking local funding support for a scaled‑down East Side development intended to enable commercial airline service at the airport.

The project, as presented, is a roughly $72 million program of work concentrated on a 190‑acre parcel the city acquired in 2018. It would begin with infrastructure and a compact, 45,000‑square‑foot, ground‑loaded terminal with up to five parking positions (gates), apron and aircraft parking, an entrance loop and vehicle parking, and the first segment of a parallel taxiway to connect aeronautical uses on the east side to the runway/taxiway system.

"We are asking the MEDC for the $22,400,000 grant," Barry Shelton, assistant city manager, said during the presentation. Shelton and Carley said the McKinney Community Development Corporation (CDC) would seek a $30 million TIFIA loan for other eligible airport improvements, and the airport is pursuing FAA and TxDOT grants to fill the remaining estimated gap of roughly $14.3 million.

The MEDC grant request would be limited, under state law, to items the EDC may fund — generally non‑aeronautical, revenue‑generating infrastructure such as parking lots and roadway improvements — and would be issued via sales tax revenue bonds if approved, Shelton said. The city plans interim financing while a federally backed TIFIA loan is processed; Shelton said TIFIA takes roughly 12–18 months to complete.

Carley and Shelton outlined several funding and revenue assumptions used in planning: annual FAA Airport Improvement Program (AIP) entitlements that today are around $150,000 for general‑aviation status but would grow with enplanements (the presentation estimated roughly $1.4 million in year 1 and about $3.0 million by year 3 under projected activity), passenger facility charges (PFCs) estimated at about $500,000 in year 1 and $1.7 million by year 3, and parking revenue that the city’s estimates put at about $2.2 million in year 1 and growing to roughly $6.5 million by year 3. Shelton said those revenues would support operating costs and help reimburse debt service on eligible capital investments.

City staff described the procurement path: the city recently completed interviews with three construction manager at‑risk (CMAR) teams and expects to name a firm this week. The CMAR will produce guaranteed maximum price(s) for the CMAR work package (the red‑shaded items shown in staff slides). Taxiway and some roadway elements will be procured as design‑bid‑build projects. Carley said the city expects to present a preconstruction contract and related materials to City Council after the CMAR selection.

Staff also gave a timeline for next steps: the public comment period on the airport environmental assessment closes Jan. 30; city staff plan a joint meeting of City Council, the MEDC board and the CDC board on March 18 to seek action on the grant requests; and construction documents and CMAR contracting are scheduled to progress through spring with an objective of having the infrastructure operational and enabling commercial service by the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to funding and airline agreements.

Carley noted the airport has already completed a 500‑foot runway extension on the south end and plans to finish a north‑end extension so the runway will be about 8,000 feet when all phases are complete. He said the current terminal design is ground‑loaded and intentionally located and sized to permit future expansion or the construction of a second, larger terminal if demand warrants.

Shelton cautioned the board that the $72 million figure is preliminary and that detailed costs will be refined during preconstruction; he said staff included significant contingencies and expect more precise guaranteed maximum prices to be available in the coming months. City staff emphasized they were presenting the request publicly and were not asking the MEDC board to approve funding at the Jan. 21 meeting.

Carley directed interested members of the public to the airport website, flytki.com, for project updates and public materials.