McKinney to begin $10.3 million Virginia Parkway reconstruction this month

Virginia Parkway was next in line for McKinney drivers, and the first signs of trouble were expected to be construction staging, detours and lane shifts along the corridor as a $10.3 million reconstruction began this month. The work was slated to continue into late 2026, and the city planned to break it into segments, the same method used on Eldorado Parkway earlier this year.

That approach usually keeps part of a road open while another stretch is under construction, but it also stretches out the disruption. For commuters, Virginia Parkway was not going to be a quick fix. It was going to be a moving work zone, with traffic shifts that could change block by block as crews advanced.

Virginia Parkway was only the first of six transportation efforts McKinney was juggling. The next most visible work for residents was reconstruction and utility work on Tennessee, Lamar and Hunt streets, along with improvements on East Virginia Street. Those projects were paired with waterline, sanitary sewer, storm sewer, illumination, hardscape and landscape upgrades, turning simple street repairs into a deeper rebuild of the corridor beneath the pavement.

The other two efforts, on College, Hunt, Davis and Church streets, and on Church, Henry and McKinney streets, showed how much of the city was being dug up at once. Some of the budgets ran from roughly $14.7 million to $16 million, underscoring that McKinney was not just resurfacing roads but replacing infrastructure underneath them. That underground work should help reduce future flooding, utility failures and emergency repairs, even as it adds months of lane closures and construction delays.

For city officials, the real test will come when Virginia Parkway is finished in late 2026. Success will not just mean a smoother ride for drivers. It will mean the roadway, drainage and utilities can handle a growing city without forcing another round of expensive repairs so soon after this one.