North Texas

Dozens Pack McKinney Council Meeting to Oppose 380 Bypass

Some people in McKinney are fighting to save their homes.

Construction of a new U.S. Highway 380 bypass will force the city to bulldoze some homes.

Which homes are demolished depends on which route is chosen.

Through a recently completed feasibility study, TxDOT found that design improvements on US 380 will not provide significant relief to existing congestion on US 380.

TxDOT has indicated they are going to conduct a second feasibility study to determine how to improve US 380 to a freeway which could include a bypass of McKinney, according to a city spokesperson.

The decision will ultimately be made by TxDOT, which will also be in charge of construction. The final route may be different than what the city suggests. 

The city says it will recommend the option that least impacts residents.

Dozens of homeowners spoke at a McKinney City Council meeting Tuesday night about the current proposals.

Most of them wore red to symbolize opposition to plans for the bypass.

Some pleaded with the council members to find a different way to deal with growth.

"This bypass is outrageous," said homeowner Holly Pry, tearfully.

Janet Anders's home is in the path of one of the proposed routes. It's a rural oasis that she says helped her overcome a bout with breast cancer.

"This was my solace. Walking these roads with the trees. If you drive the neighborhood, I can't imagine why anybody would want to take this away and turn it into a highway," she said.

Now she's fighting a different kind of battle, this time, at City Hall.

"All bypass options will obliterate our home and much, if not all, of Walnut Grove," Anders said at Tuesday's meeting.

Anders is one of many asking the city to explore other options.

"So that the city in this situation is 'Unique by Nature' and not so, so by concrete," said Pry.

It was a meeting where no decisions were made, just a chance for the council to hear feedback from residents, who seemed unanimous Tuesday that McKinney's growth shouldn't come at their expense.

"The reality is at some point we have to do something in terms of making a recommendation," said Mayor Brian Loughmiller.

City planners say they have looked at dozens of routes during the process and will now go back to the drawing board.

They had hoped to choose a route by May but now says it will be later this year before a decision is made.

It'll then be sent to the state for more analysis.

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