McKinney has fundamentally shifted from bedroom community to regional sovereign. The city is no longer capturing Dallas/Plano overflow—it's aggressively positioning itself as an independent economic node with its own airport, entertainment destinations, and self-contained growth frontiers. This is the most ambitious municipal repositioning in the North Texas suburbs.

The intelligence reveals a city operating on three distinct timelines. Immediate (2025-2026): Cannon Beach surf resort now under construction (broke ground December 2025), McKinney National Airport commercial terminal rising, and a new 141-acre US 75 Industrial District approved for mixed-use development. Medium-term (2026-2028): TKI opens to commercial flights with Avelo Airlines; US 380 Bypass lets for construction. Long-term (2030+): Explosive master-planned growth in the Northern Frontier (Honey Creek: 10,500 units) contrasted against painful school closures in the Legacy Southwest. The "rising tide lifts all boats" era is over—McKinney is now a market of high specificity.