Seniors Can’t Pass Up McKinney

…and for good reason. McKinney was selected as the#1 “Best Place to Live” by Money Magazine, Oct 2014. So this senior did some checking to see why McKinney, Texas earned this prestigious award.

Both the city and the county were named for Collin McKinney who signed the Texas Declaration of Independence. Today it is a city of around 145,000 located 30 miles north of Dallas on Interstate 75.

The history of McKinney notes the city to be one of the oldest towns in North Texas, dating to 1841 when the first settlers arrived in the region from Kentucky, Arkansas, and Tennessee.

Seniors Enjoy Old and Authentic

McKinney has one of the oldest authentic and thriving historic downtowns in Texas. The downtown district offers over 100 unique shops and for the senior gourmand, more than a dozen unique restaurants. It is said in McKinney…”Don’t expect to lose any weight while visiting McKinney; quite simply, the food is way too good.”

Senior visitors will encounter an assortment of specialty shops, art galleries, furniture stores, exquisite antique collections, gifts and home décor and apparel boutiques. Town Lake Recreational Area is an attractive 22 acre lake for fishing or for boating. Senior hikers, the Lake is surrounded by a 1.3 mile hike and bike trail.

So as you are cruising around Dallas, swing north into McKinney and plan to spend a few days.  Seems like something is brewing all year long. Annual Events include Bike the Bricks, Red White and Boom!, Mickey Mantle World Series, Oktoberfest, Dickens of a Christmas and the Heritage Guild Holiday Homes Tour.

Historic Homes, Courthouse Square and Village

If you are into historic sites, like me, McKinney is home to over 1700 historic homes and buildings and an  historic Courthouse Square. Chestnut Square Historic Village is a collection of six historic homes, a replica of a one-room school house, chapel and store on 2.5 acres just south of the downtown McKinney square.

The grounds also include a blacksmith shop, smoke house, and beautiful chapel and reception gardens.  The buildings include period artifacts showing how people lived in Collin County from 1854-1920.

The city’s tree-lined streets, historic downtown and tight-knit community give McKinney a friendly, small town feel. Check out the Grand Hotel… it would make a great place to bed down in historic downtown McKinney. Enjoy your visit to this Number One Town.  jeb