McKinney Council reviews $72 million east-side terminal plan for McKinney National Airport

McKINNEY, Texas — City staff on Jan. 7 updated the McKinney City Council on a reworked east-side development plan for McKinney National Airport that would cost about $72 million and include a 45,000-square-foot passenger terminal, parallel taxiway and roadway work to connect the site to FM 546.

The proposal, presented by airport staff and consultants, is a reduced-phase plan intended as a proof-of-concept to allow commercial airline service to operate from McKinney National Airport (TKI). "Airlines started reaching out to the airport in 2019, unsolicited, asking about the ability, and what it would take for them to operate out of McKinney National Airport," said Ken Carle, airport director.

City and consulting staff said the plan responds to the failure of a 2023 bond proposal for a larger terminal; the earlier concept was a roughly $300 million terminal funded in part by property-tax-backed bonds that voters rejected. "We pared down the program," Barry (Shelton) said, presenting a line-item estimate that totals about $72,000,000 and that focuses on day-one infrastructure needed to host airlines and general-aviation uses.

What the plan contains and why it matters

Consultant Mitchell McAnally of Garver described the proposed site layout as a greenfield buildout on the airport’s east side. "There currently are no taxiways, no public roadway infrastructure," McAnally said. The design presented includes a parallel taxiway (Taxiway Charlie), ramp and apron space for aircraft, an initial terminal sized…