Coppell Chronicle Vol. 2, No. 8

Oldest House May Soon Have New Home • Library Board Receives Assurances • City Tightens Rules for Short-Term Rentals • Coppell Creates Ethics Review Panel

The “memories” feature on Facebook recently reminded me of the time that I posted this photo and said, “My local paper isn’t going to win any awards for this headline.”

I’m bringing that up this week because the City Council did indeed decide on recent matters detailed in previous editions. Coincidentally, this edition also includes a reference to the Citizens’ Advocate.

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Oldest House May Soon Have New Home

This house sits at 532 S. Coppell Road … for now.

The house at 532 S. Coppell Road, which was built in 1905, is thought be to the oldest one still standing in the city. On Tuesday, the City Council was briefed on a request from the Coppell Historical Society to move the house to Heritage Park — specifically to the park’s southeast corner, directly south of the Ihnfeldt house.

Its current owners are Citizens’ Advocate founder Jean Murph and her husband, Dave. The Murphs would pay for the relocation, but they want the city to be responsible for establishing water and sewer service at the new site plus any ongoing maintenance costs.

In an April 4 letter to City Manager Mike Land, Coppell Historical Society President Chris Long said the Murphs would donate the house to the Historical Society, which would operate it as a visitors center. But in an April 12 memo to the mayor and City Council, Director of Parks and Recreation Jessica Carpenter said the house would be donated to the city.

I’m sure those conflicting details will be worked out easily enough, because Long is married to City Council Member Cliff Long, who recused himself from Tuesday’s discussion. During that discussion, Council Member Don Carroll asked about the ongoing costs, and Carpenter said they should be “negligible.” She said the four structures already in place at Heritage Park cost the city about $1,150 in electricity bills each year, so adding the Murphs’ house should increase the annual tab by less than $300.

Council Member Mark Hill wondered whether the Murphs’ house would actually fit in the specified area south of the Ihnfeldt House. He also asked whether the city would be out of luck if it accepted the donation and then discovered the site wasn’t big enough. Land and Carpenter said the city will investigate all aspects of the house — including whether it meets the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act — and its potential new home before officially accepting the donation; Tuesday’s discussion was about getting a green light to begin that investigation.

Before that green light was given, Council Member Kevin Nevels asked what would happen to the land where the Murphs’ house sits now. Carpenter said a local developer has expressed interest in building another live-work unit there, to go along with the five that already exist along South Coppell Road and the five others that are on the way. Indeed, the listing for the Murphs’ property on the RE/MAX website includes these statements: “Rare opportunity to have a business in Historic Coppell. … Perfect for a Live Work environment. … HOUSE DOES NOT CONVEY AND WILL BE MOVED.”

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Library Board Receives Assurances

In last week’s edition, I reported that the Coppell Parks and Recreation Board had been briefed on a plan to integrate the Cozby Library and Community Commons into the Parks and Recreation Department. On Thursday, the city’s Library Advisory Board discussed the same idea.

Board Chair Frank Gasparro and Vice Chair Martha Garber both expressed concerns about potential effects on the library’s budget, staffing, and autonomy. Director of Library Services Dennis Quinn basically told them not to worry. “I do not have any concern that the library is going to suffer,” Quinn said.

Board member Sekhar Katkam asked what prompted the integration.

“I don’t know that there was any one particular triggering event,” Quinn said, but city leadership wanted to integrate two complementary departments. “An opportunity was seen, and a decision was made.”

Quinn said he was looking at the integration as an opportunity for the Cozby Library and the Parks and Recreation Department, both of which have won awards in their respective fields, to learn from each other as they continue their winning ways.

“There are a lot of commonalities between what we do in the library and what our colleagues do in Parks and Rec,” he said. “We both share the charge to make the best quality of life that we can for everybody in the community.”

Quinn pointed out that Coppell’s Parks and Recreation Department has experience with incorporating facilities and programs that most parks departments do not, such as the Biodiversity Education Center and the Coppell Arts Center. Garber asked whether the Parks and Recreation Department needed a new name to reflect its broader scope. Quinn said that has been discussed, but he didn’t provide any potential new names.

Assistant Director Amy Pittman-Hassett has worked at the Cozby Library for 24 years, and she’s seen a lot of changes during her tenure. She said the library has come out stronger as a result of each change.

“We do have to continually evolve and change and try to become the best versions of ourselves,” she said.

Gasparro said he asked Deputy City Manager Traci Leach whether the board that he chairs would still be necessary after the integration is complete, and he said Leach told him it would. The Parks and Recreation Board has enough on their plate without taking on oversight of the library.

To that point, the Library Advisory Board on Thursday approved the extended-hours policy that I wrote about in the March 27 edition, but with two updated details:

• Extended hours will be available until midnight on Monday through Friday evenings, but not at all on Saturdays and Sundays.

• The minimum age will be 17 instead of 18.

Assuming the City Council signs off on the idea, the library’s extended hours should be available starting in June.

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City Tightens Rules for Short-Term Rentals

Back in February, the Coppell City Council was briefed on proposed revisions to the ordinance governing short-term rentals. As detailed in the March 6 edition, the major changes include:

• Requiring annual inspections of homes offered as short-term rentals

• Requiring operators to annually re-apply for a permit

• Adding clarifying definitions, including defining what constitutes a violation

• Instituting new levels of enforcement for violators

Director of Community Development Mindi Hurley brought the proposal back to the council on Tuesday for formal approval. Before the unanimous vote to approve, Council Member John Jun asked Hurley what kind of feedback she had received from homeowners associations and from property owners who offer short-term rentals. As you might expect, she said a lot of the HOAs would like for the city to ban short-term rentals, while many of the landlords offering short-term rentals were opposed to any new restrictions on their businesses.

“As we said from the beginning, we have tried to create an ordinance that balances the desires of those who want to have a short-term rental while also protecting the neighboring properties,” Hurley said.

None of the council members asked Hurley how many properties in Coppell have a permit to operate as a short-term rental, so I did. There are 10 permitted properties in the city, but Hurley knows of three others operating without a permit.

“We are currently working with the other three properties to have them come into compliance by getting a permit and operating according to the rules or to cease operating,” she said via email. “We continuously monitor to see if there are other properties operating as an STR that we are unaware of.”

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Coppell Creates Ethics Review Panel

Also in February, the Coppell City Council voted to repeal the city’s Code of Conduct and dissolve its Conduct Review Board. As I reported in the Feb. 27 edition, City Attorney Bob Hager said the Code of Conduct was written decades before the existence of social media, had inspired myriad questions and concerns from council members over the years, and was long overdue for an upgrade.

“Instead of trying to fix this boat, I think you need to build a better boat and a new boat,” he said.

On Tuesday, Hager pulled that boat up to the docks for the council’s review. Here are a few of the major changes:

• The Conduct Review Board has been replaced by an Ethics Review Panel.

• The new panel will oversee elected and appointed officials but not city employees, who are covered by personnel policies.

• The council can designate more than one attorney as Special Legal Counsel, assuming multiple lawyers who reside in Coppell are willing to donate their time and talents.

• Ethical considerations have been separated from violations of state law to make the ordinance easier to read.

• An anti-discrimination clause has been added.

“Obviously, things have changed over the years both with social media and our outlook on life and how we treat each other, and hopefully it’s more civil,” Hager said. “But we needed to add those standards in there so it was clear to you, and to the people you appoint as boards and commissions, what the expectation of this body and what our community is.”

Venky Venkatraman, a longtime member of the dissolved Conduct Review Board, was not mentioned on Tuesday, but I interpreted that statement from Hager as being related to Venkatraman’s controversial comments on Facebook.

Before voting to approve the revised documents, the council debated whether they should begin interviewing potential members of the Ethics Review Panel, or wait until the fall when new volunteers are normally added to the city’s boards and commissions. The consensus was that it would be better to appoint members to the Ethics Review Panel sooner than later, just in case there’s a reason for them to meet — even though the Conduct Review Board rarely had a reason to do so.

If you would like to serve on the Ethics Review Panel, contact the council.

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Chronicle Crumbs

• When I wrote my lone article so far about Coppell’s Smart City Board, the panel was chaired by Todd Storch. On Tuesday, the City Council formally accepted Storch’s resignation, which he attributed to being too busy with a new paid job. That’s a loss for the Smart City Board, as it takes a smart man to know his limitations … typed the dummy who conjured a second job for himself out of thin air.

• Irving residents are invited to a community open house on Monday evening so they can meet the six finalists to become the city’s next police chief. The event is scheduled from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Irving Convention Center.

• As I survey the businesses just outside Coppell’s city limits, my favorite name has long been Drunken Donkey Bar & Grill. But a new contender is the smoke shop known as The Coughy Pot. You have to admire the transparency.

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Community Calendar

Coppell Aggie Muster: The Coppell A&M Club will gather at the Coppell Senior and Community Center on Thursday evening to hear from Thomas J. Little, who was a member of the 12th Man Kickoff Team in 1993, 1994, and 1995. The social hour is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.

Lariettes Spring Show: The annual extravaganza, which also features the Silver Stars and the Coppell High School Band, is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Friday. 1 p.m. on Saturday, and 7 p.m. on Saturday in the CHS auditorium.

Free Pet Microchip Event: Coppell Animal Services will offer a limited number of free pet microchips to Coppell residents between 1 and 4 p.m. on Saturday.

Preserving Family Memories: Felicia Williamson, Director of Library and Archives at the Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum, will be at the Cozby Library and Community Commons at 2 p.m. on April 24 to lead a workshop related to family heirlooms, photos, and artifacts.

Coppell Rotary Club: April 25 is the deadline to apply for one of the club’s five $1,500 college scholarships. May 1 is the deadline to participate in the club’s “Lease a Flag” program for all five flag holidays this year (Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, and Veterans Day).

Leadership Coppell: The Coppell Chamber of Commerce’s 10-month program is designed to “inspire, grow, and unite high-quality leadership in our community.” The 2022-2023 edition begins Aug. 19; the application deadline is April 29.

Earthfest: This celebration of Coppell’s commitment to the environment is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on April 30 at the Biodiversity Education Center.

Crafting in Heritage Park: The Coppell Historical Society is launching a monthly program for children ages 6 to 12. The first class, which is scheduled from 1 to 2:30 p.m. on April 30, will be about wet felting and sewing. The cost of admission is $25, which will cover all supplies. Future classes will focus on printmaking, leather crafting, and candle making.

Humvee Challenge: If you and up to five friends think you can pull a 7,000-pound Humvee across the First United Methodist Church parking lot, sign up for Claymore Operations’ second annual Humvee Challenge, which is scheduled for May 7.

Run to Fund: This 5K scheduled for May 7 benefits the Coppell ISD Education Foundation, which fulfills teachers’ grant requests with money that can’t be recaptured by the state.