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Council reviews proposal to cap downtown parkland-fee assessments
Summary
Staff proposed creating a downtown or historic-neighborhood cap on per-acre land values used to calculate cash-in-lieu parkland fees to reduce outsized charges on small infill projects; council discussed potential fairness issues for nearby parcels outside the cap.
One option staff presented to reduce steep cash-in-lieu bills for small infill and downtown redevelopment was a zone-based cap that would limit the per-acre land value used to calculate fees within a defined downtown boundary.
"We could create a new zone or perhaps mirror or combine a current zone within the downtown area where the fee is essentially capped," Jenny Baker said, noting the historic neighborhood improvement zone as a possible template. Baker cautioned that a cap applied only to a narrow downtown boundary could create perceived unfairness for adjacent properties just outside the zone.
Council members praised the predictability a downtown cap would bring to infill projects in dense areas but raised concerns about developers shifting projects just outside the boundary to capture the cap. Baker also noted the parkland dedication ordinance currently does not apply within the McKinney Town Center boundary in some cases, which complicates how a new cap might interact with existing zone rules. Staff will return with specific boundary options if council wants to pursue a downtown cap as part of a broader package of changes.
