The City of McKinney announced last week that Greg Conley, who has served as its police chief since 2015, will retire from the force on September 30 and move into a new position with the City as director of public safety.
Conley will start in his new position on October 1 if the upcoming budget is approved by the city council, according to the City.
“It has been my distinct honor to serve as Chief of Police for the City of McKinney since April 2015,” said Conley in a statement. “These past years have been the most challenging and rewarding of my life. We have an excellent Police Department that works in an environment of tremendous support from our City Council and citizens.”
Conley will manage the McKinney Police and Fire Departments and the Office of Emergency Management, working to strengthen the City’s strategic public safety policies in his new role.
“I look forward to the new challenges this position will bring and am pleased I will still be closely involved with our excellent Police and Fire Departments,” he added.
Conley will focus on developing stronger public safety policies for working with schools and other institutions to address the risks of violence and the City’s response to it.
He will also focus on integrating emergency management functions to better respond to emergencies at the McKinney National Airport, increasing community engagement on public safety issues throughout the city, and enhancing public safety coordination with Collin County for unincorporated areas of McKinney.
Beginning on October 1, Assistant Police Chief Joe Ellenburg will take over as interim police chief while the City performs an extensive search for a permanent replacement.
“While we will miss Chief Conley’s leadership of the Police Department, we are glad to have an opportunity to retain his leadership for our team, and we are excited about the role he can serve in integrating and strengthening our overall public safety functions,” stated City Manager Paul Grimes.
