Commission approves design exception for Greenwood multifamily screening

Carol Robinson, downtown development planner for the City of McKinney, presented a design-exception request for a multifamily development at 905 North Throckmorton Street and 750 Throckmorton Place. Robinson said the 2.53-acre property is owned by the McKinney Housing Authority and that the applicant is proposing a continuous steel fence with masonry columns every 20 feet as an alternative to the typically required solid masonry screening wall.

Robinson told commissioners staff recommended approval, noting similar alternatives had been approved elsewhere in the historically significant area. The applicant's representative, Centaurus Montalio of Centres and Associates, said he was "in full agreement with staff's summary and would like to request approval of the final item." Commissioners asked whether entrances or parking lots would be gated (staff said notated gating was not shown) and for clarification that the screening would face adjacent residential uses; staff confirmed screening is proposed along side and rear property lines adjacent to residences. The motion to close the public hearing and approve the design exception passed unanimously.