A new nonprofit has filed a federal court petition seeking to block construction of a $72 million expansion of McKinney National Airport that would allow commercial passenger service to begin next year.

The North Texas Conservation Association, based in McKinney, filed case No. 25-1135 on May 26 in the United States District Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

The petition said the environmental assessment (EA) prepared for the airport failed to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act.

“The North Texas Conservation Association (NCTA), and its members are adversely affected by the approval of the project and will be adversely affected by the project itself,” said the action filed by NCTA General Counsel Steven E. Ross. 

“The McKinney City Council seems to have been more interested in meeting the timeline set by some unnamed commercial airlines than listening to voters,” Ross said. 

Residents twice rejected referendums to expand the airport, known as TKI.

Paul Chabot of McKinney formed NCTA the day the suit was filed. A commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve, Chabot was an unsuccessful candidate for Texas House District 61 in the 2022 Republican Primary.

“We believe the environmental assessment done on the McKinney airport expansion is seriously flawed,” Chabot said. “It fails to fully and adequately consider environmental impacts in the vicinity of the airport, such as the Heard Museum and residential areas in McKinney and Fairview.”

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By Bob Wieland | [email protected]