At its latest regular meeting, McKinney City Council approved a resolution authorizing the city manager to execute a TxDOT grant of $14,800,000 for infrastructure at McKinney National Airport's Eastside development - covering the terminal, parking, and roadway work needed to support commercial airline service.

The grant comes through a rider in House Bill 500 and will be administered by TxDOT. Airport Director King Carley presented the item to council. The funding diversifies the airport project's revenue base and reduces how much of the cost falls on local sales taxes - a meaningful shift for a project that voters rejected in bond form back in 2023.

For context: the city approved a $72 million airline terminal project in January 2025 and broke ground on pre-construction work shortly after. The terminal is being built on the east side of the airport, with three gates and a commercial service launch targeted for late 2026. The TxDOT grant represents about 20% of the total project cost coming from state infrastructure funds - which is the kind of funding mix that makes a project like this financially sustainable long-term.

McKinney has been steadily building toward becoming a third major commercial airport option in the DFW metroplex. This grant is one more piece of that puzzle clicking into place. Watch mckinneytexas.org/airport for updates on the commercial service launch timeline.
(Source: McKinney City Council Regular Meeting, September 15, 2026)

McKinney's first AC Hotel by Marriott is slated to open on the city's southern border later this year. The property will include Good & Proper Wood Fired Grill on the fifth floor with its own separate entrance, open for dinner service. A full-service hotel with a rooftop restaurant is a genuinely different category from what McKinney has had in its hospitality lineup.
South McKinney | Opening 2026

Council also approved a $15,000 Promotional and Community Event Grant at the September 15 meeting for McKinney Main Street to advertise and market the 2026 McKinney Oktoberfest. The event is this Friday - September 25 at Historic Downtown McKinney Square, 5-11PM. Free to attend. Good timing on that grant.
(Source: McKinney City Council Regular Meeting, September 15, 2026)

Council approved a second $15,000 grant at the same meeting for Millennial Maven Creative Foundation to advertise and market the 2026 Rooted in Rhythm event. Rooted in Rhythm is McKinney's emerging music and cultural event. Date TBA - watch @rootedinthythmmckinney for the announcement.
(Source: McKinney City Council Regular Meeting, September 15, 2026)

One week left to vote for the McKinney Farmers Market at Chestnut Square in America's Farmers Market Celebration. Free, takes 30 seconds at markets.farmland.org. Deadline September 30 - do it before you forget.
(Source: City of McKinney)

🐉 Dragon Trails at the Heard - Final Weeks
Twelve animatronic dragons on a half-mile trail through the Heard’s grounds - running through the end of September. If you haven’t gone yet, this week is your last real chance before it wraps.
Heard Natural Science Museum, 1 Nature Place · 9AM-5PM ($12-$16, free members)

🪷 Mindful Monday - Breathe by Design with La Sheena Thompson
A weekly wellness practice designed to reduce stress, restore balance, and improve focus through yoga, breathwork, mindful movement, and mindfulness. Each session introduces practical techniques you can immediately apply at home or at work. Drop in for a single class whenever you need a reset.
MillHouse McKinney, 610 Elm St Suite 1000 · 11AM-12PM ($30)

🐯 Wild and Whimsical Watercolors - Majestic Tiger
Second session of the jungle animal watercolor series at MillHouse - this week the subject is a majestic tiger. Learn brush control, layering, and blending while painting a finished piece to take home. All skill levels welcome.
MillHouse McKinney, 610 Elm St Suite 1000 · 1-3PM ($20)

🎭 The Yes, And Improv Jam
Curious about improv? Beginners, students, and experienced improvisers come together to play games, try scenes, and meet new people. Jump onstage or just watch from the audience - no pressure, no experience required, no scripts. Designed to be beginner-friendly and genuinely welcoming.
The Comedy Arena, 305 E. Virginia St. · 7-9PM ($5-$15, 2-item minimum)

🍴 Gather for Good: Dinner Benefit for DreamCatchers Foundation
Dinner with strangers at Sugarbacon for a good cause - icebreaker questions, shared dining, 6 people per table, new friends by the end of the night. Proceeds benefit DreamCatchers Foundation, which develops youth through intergenerational service and fulfills end-of-life Dreams for hospice patients.
Sugarbacon Proper Kitchen, 216 W. Virginia St. · 7-10PM ($24.39)

🎵 SINGO Music Bingo at Tailgaters
Music bingo - you hear a song, match it on your card, win prizes. Pop hits, rock classics, and your favorite people. No cost to play. A genuinely fun Wednesday night.
Tailgaters Sports Bar & Grill, 4150 Eldorado Pkwy Suite 800 · 7PM (Free)

📊 Your Financials Tell a Story
A practical workshop for nonprofit leaders on how to read and communicate what your financials reveal about your organization’s priorities and future. Presented by Tawnia Wise of Wise Resource Development and Melanie Kirton of The Financial Affairs - one hour of content and Q&A, followed by 30 minutes of networking. Free.
First United Bank McKinney Redbud, McKinney · 11:30AM-1PM (Free)

🍷 Ron Rubin Wine Tasting at Wine A Little
A guided 4-course tasting through Ron Rubin Winery’s lineup - Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Sauvignon, each paired with artisanal cheese bites. Limited to 32 seats. 21+.
Wine A Little, 7560 SH-121 Suite 150 · 6:30-7:30PM ($23+fees)

🎲 Mix & Mingle: The Ultimate Game Night — Part 2
Interactive games, great energy, and a room full of people who actually want to meet each other. Free admission - come hungry and support Cubana Grille while you mingle. RSVP required.
Cubana Grille, 4051 S Custer Rd Suite 1160 · 6:30-8:30PM (Free, RSVP on Eventbrite)

🎭 The Comedy Mix
Three live comedy acts, one wildly unpredictable night - rotating improv troupes, comedy acts, and experimental performers. This week’s lineup: Jesther, Lost in the Sauce, and The Key Changers. No scripts. No safety nets.
The Comedy Arena, 305 E. Virginia St. · 7:30PM ($17-$23, 2-item minimum)

Go to the Farmers Market in style with our original McKinney canvas tote bag. $9.99 OFF automatically applied at checkout to cover shipping & more.

Before the square was the square - at least for a significant part of McKinney's population - there was Chestnut Street in East McKinney.

In the early decades of the 20th century, McKinney's Black community built a thriving commercial and civic district along and around Chestnut Street, east of downtown. The Legacy Neighborhoods, as they're now called, were home to Black-owned businesses, churches, schools, and social institutions that served a community systematically excluded from the downtown square's restaurants, shops, and civic spaces during the era of legal segregation.

Grocery stores, barbershops, a hotel, funeral homes, a pharmacy - the full infrastructure of a self-sufficient community operating parallel to, and largely invisible from, the city's official commercial center. The churches were particularly central: Caldwell Chapel AME, New Hope Baptist, and others served not just as houses of worship but as community halls, meeting spaces, and organizing hubs for civic life.

The schools matter too. Doty School, which Texas Historical Commission recently designated for an Undertold Marker, educated Black McKinney children through the grades with resources far below those given to white schools - and still produced graduates who went on to build careers, families, and institutions. The story of what those teachers accomplished with what they were given is one of the most underreported chapters in Collin County history.

Most of the original commercial buildings in East McKinney are gone. What remains are the churches, some residential architecture, and the community itself - now the subject of the Undertold McKinney pilot project, which is actively working to document and recognize these sites before the last living connections to them are lost. Worth knowing about and worth supporting at undertoldmckinney.org.

Mon: ⛈️ Partly cloudy and humid; a PM t-storm in spots, high 91°F
Tue: ☀️ Partly sunny and very warm, high 92°F
Wed: ☀️ Mostly sunny and warm, high 91°F
Thu: ☀️ Very warm with sunny spells, high 93°F

🎉 Let’s keep growing McKinney’s fastest-growing newsletter:

Refer 2 friends → I shout you out in the newsletter
Refer 5 → Get my McKinney Restaurant Guide

Here’s the deal: I make this newsletter for free and you share this with your neighbor, friend and cousin’s cousin!

Forward this e-mail to them.