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Plano, Allen said McKinney, linked by U.S. Highway 75 which is carrying development north from Dallas, are no longer quiet little towns of the North Texas prairie.
As the builders have flocked north into southern Collin County, each city has become a boomtown of sorts, facing both the problems and benefits brought by rapid change.
Nowhere has the change been more dramatic than in Plano. A decade ago, the city trailed McKinney in terms of population growth and industrial development.
Now Plano, known internationally as J. R. Ewing's home, has become home to some of America's most prestigious companies. And Plano's growth as an employment center spurred development in Allen and McKinney, who now boast they are more than just bedroom communities to Dallas.
The problems of coping with such growth are similar. City officials say they have learned from the mistakes of the others. And they all say their city has maintained the highest possible quality of development.
If the presence of the best of Dallas' developers is any indication, the boast of quality development might be accurate. Trammell Crow Co., Vantage Cos., Lincoln Property Co., Cambridge Cos., Rosewood Properties, Hunt Properties and a host of other well-regarded developers have staked their claims in the area.
City officials say the only impediment to growth will be their ability to manage it. And all admit it is no small chore.
What follows is a review of the economic and industrial development occurring in the three cities straddling North Central Expressway north of Dallas County.
Plano
When H. Ross Perot, chairman of Electronic Data Systems Corp., addressed the Plano Chamber of Commerce last September about his 2,640-acre office park, he gave the members a word of advice.
"The big skyline's going to be right here in Plano, not in Dallas," he said, recalled a chamber member who attended the luncheon. "So if you're moving to a new office, take the north view."
It's hard to imagine what the park, the new home of EDS, Frito-Lay and Southland Life Insurance Co., has done for Plano. But in one fell swoop, EDS's commitment to Plano has given the city credibility as something other than a satellite of Dallas.
"It has helped change the perspective of our city...