Youth sports soar From the cover
Sports facilities
Counting courts
Public facility
Private facility
At McKinney’s public parks and recreation facilities, there are:
PSA McKinney 90,000 square feet 8 hardwood basketball/ volleyball courts
Areté Athletics 150,000 square feet 11 volleyball/multi-use courts
11 baseball fields
11 softball fields
380
23 basketball courts
21 soccer fields
McKinney
Craig Ranch Soccer Complex 13 soccer fields, including 6 artificial turf fields and one championship field. Four more fields to be converted to turf.
75
28 tennis courts
13 pickleball courts
The Courts of McKinney 27 tennis courts, including 5 indoor courts 8 pickleball courts, including 4 indoor courts
SOURCES: MCKINNEY PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT, VISIT MCKINNEY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
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Since the pandemic, the McKinney Soccer Association has doubled in size, MSA President Laurie Nichols said. The association hosts a mix of recreational and competitive soccer leagues for kids separated by age groups. Nichols said she’s expecting the association’s enrollment to continue growing, along with the need for playing fields. In 2024, the McKinney Baseball and Softball Association had nearly 1,000 more children than in 2023, MBSA Commissioner Patrick Capel estimated. Capel said he doesn’t see a reason why that growth would stop in 2025. The association’s biggest pain point currently is finding more fields to support its players, Capel said. “We’re always keen for seeing when new initiatives are coming to the city, where the fields are going to be built,” he said. Matt Hanlin, president of Impact Sports which operates The Courts of McKinney, said the facility has seen a spike in demand for youth program- ming since the completion of the facility expan- sion. In June 2023, a 55,000-square-foot indoor tennis and pickleball facility opened as part of The Courts of McKinney, joining the existing outdoor tennis complex. The facility sees over 150 youth athletes daily, Hanlin said, noting that the facility has produced internationally ranked tennis players. Diving in deeper Club volleyball is a popular sport in North Texas, particularly for children between 10-18 years old, Areté Athletics Partner Lance Black said. When the competitive volleyball organization was founded, Black’s role was to find a facility. “When you’re talking about youth sports, there’s a lack of facilities in this area and it’s true for volleyball as well,” Black said When the 70,000-square-foot building in East McKinney opened in 2016, it had five volleyball
dedicated to creating a solid sense of community for McKinney residents,” Kinkade said in an email. “By expanding our athletic facilities, we can offer more programs for the fast-growing community.” Kinkade said the department is considering creating a policy with different tiers that would prioritize use by recognized users and for tourna- ments, but that would also allow use by residents. Surrounding cities, including Allen, Frisco, Plano and Prosper, offer opportunities for residents to rent city athletic facilities. A policy change proposal is expected to be presented to McKinney City Council later this year. Redline Athletics, a business that provides foundational preparation and training for youth athletes in a variety of sports, also offers a select youth baseball program in McKinney. Redline Athletics Owner Jesen Merle said the city has an opportunity to support and retain existing youth sports teams by allowing field rentals. “McKinney would be doing a good thing by opening up those facilities to competitive organi- zations,” Merle said, noting the economic benefits such as collection of rental fees for fields. Visit McKinney Director Aaron Werner said the city also reaps the benefits of tourism and associated spending at hotels and restaurants from visitors coming to McKinney for sporting events. Dr. Troy Smurawa, director of Pediatric Sports Medicine at Children’s Health Andrews Institute, said participation in youth sports can benefit children both physically and mentally. The impact While city officials look to continue growing McKinney’s athletic facility inventory, local leagues are adapting to increasing demand.
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McKinney has seen an increase in nearly every youth sports program that uses athletic fields at city parks, Director of Parks and Recreation Amy Kinkade said. City officials are working to match the contin- ued growth of the local youth sports community through the addition of $80 million worth of new and renovated athletic fields. McKinney’s youth athletes can also be found at private facilities in the city, such as Areté Athletics. Despite the projects underway, Kinkade said the city is limited in how many facilities can be constructed to accommodate the need. “We’re trying to catch up,” Kinkade said. The situation Projects to renovate existing facilities and add new athletic fields are underway at city parks. The McKinney Soccer Complex at Craig Ranch is under construction, and the two-phase project will see 10 of the complex’s 13 fields converted to synthetic turf. The second phase of the project is expected to be completed in spring 2026. “It’s going to be, once it’s completed, one of the best complexes in DFW,” Kinkade said. City officials are also adding four new softball fields at Gabe Nesbitt Community Park, and other upgrades at Al Ruschhaupt Soccer Complex and Grady Littlejohn Softball and Baseball Complex. As parks and recreation officials work to con- tinue expanding and upgrading the city’s athletic facility inventory, they are also considering updates to the field usage policy. The city fields are currently only able to be used by recognized local sports leagues for games and tournaments. “The Parks and Recreation Department is
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