The Price of McKinney's Growth Is $52 Million

McKinney, one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States, is asking voters to approve six bond measures totaling $52 million on Saturday.

The money will primarily be used for land acquisitions to expand McKinney's public safety building and services, streets, new parks, public works projects, flood controls and an expansion of the city's historic downtown to add more parking.

"It's growth-oriented and maintenance-oriented," Mayor Brian Loughmiller said.

Voters can decide to pass or reject any of the six bond proposals. But City Manager Frank Ragan said every dollar is critical. He said McKinney can't afford to just try and keep pace with its growth. The city has to try getting ahead of it, he said.

“Much of this is about investing for the future, not just taking care of what today's needs are, but getting ready for what we know will be inevitable growth," Ragan said.

He said this is the perfect time to pass the bond measures because they don't represent a tax increase and because the price of land and commodities are low, McKinney can get started early on improvement projects, saving the city money.

Many residents say they agree with the projects outlined in the bond proposals, but most weren't aware the election was Saturday. Primary run-off elections were held in mid-April, only a few weeks ago.

City leaders say they're concerned about voter turnout, which has been low in early voting. Good weather and a Saturday Election Day with no major candidate races beside school board races could hurt the bond proposals' chances.

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