Coppell Chronicle Vol. 4, No. 49
Coppell Cemetery Filled With Non-Residents • Carport Owner Strikes Out on Third Attempt • Flood Control District to Conduct Election • Council Quashes Quick Quack Car Wash
Coppell Cemetery Filled With Non-Residents
Only a quarter of the burial rights in Coppell’s cemetery are held by people who live (or lived) in the city.
Rolling Oaks Memorial Center offers in-ground plots, a mausoleum with crypts, and a columbarium with niches for urns. During a recent discussion of the City Council’s philosophy for the cemetery, it was revealed that 74 percent of the burial rights are held by non-residents. That statistic covers all plots, crypts, and niches that are already occupied or reserved for future use.
Sheri Belmont, an assistant director of the city’s Community Experiences Department, led the Jan. 14 discussion. Her first question for the council: What do you not want to see happen at Rolling Oaks?
“What I don’t want to see happen has already happened,” Mayor Wes Mays said in reference to the 74 percent. “I never wanted to see that number happen.”
What may have been intended to be a community amenity has become a regional attraction. As they did during a similar discussion in October, Belmont and City Manager Mike Land explained that Coppell never had policies to keep non-residents from buying plots at Rolling Oaks. Although residents were offered discounted prices, Rolling Oaks’ highest fees were still lower than those of other cemeteries throughout North Texas.
(See “Cemetery Has Dwindling Supply of Spaces” in Vol. 4, No. 36.)
Belmont said Rolling Oaks has 960 spaces left, including 200 in-ground plots; the remaining 760 options are crypts and niches. She said a Phase 2 expansion could quickly create another 900 in-ground plots — a sharp drop from the preliminary estimate of 1,500 she gave the council in October. A theoretical Phase 3 expansion into an undeveloped area of the property could add an undetermined number of plots.
Mayor Pro Tem Kevin Nevels said he would not want to see any Coppell residents turned away from the cemetery due to a lack of space. Nevels said the prioritized groups should be current residents, followed by former residents, then direct family members of current or former residents, and finally people who worship in Coppell but live elsewhere.
“I don’t want to throw water on you,” Mays told Nevels, “but your criteria is pretty much how we got where we are.”
The mayor explained how they got here: “A family of four, maybe, wants to buy four plots, but then realize they have a grandmother and grandad that need two, and then they have another grandmother and grandad that need another two, and then they have a brother and sister, so all of a sudden, a family of four is up to a family of 16.”
Once it became clear that the council wants to balance the cemetery’s ratio of residents versus non-residents, Belmont promised to come back with policies to help achieve that vision. But she’s also going to prepare a presentation about potentially privatizing the facility, because one of the council’s newest members — Jim Walker — questioned whether the city should own and operate a cemetery.
“We’re in a place that we’re not really happy with, because we’re in a business that we know nothing about, and one could argue have no business operating,” Walker said.
Council Member Don Carroll said he also wondered whether Coppell would be better served if the cemetery was managed by someone other than the city government, but Council Member Brianna Hinojosa-Smith said privatization might only exacerbate the non-resident issue.
“If we continue to operate it, then we have an opportunity to put some guardrails on it and some policy around it. If we privatize it, we don’t,” she said. “What will it turn into?”
Carport Owner Strikes Out on Third Attempt
Three public hearings, conducted by three panels of city officials, have yielded three rejections of a noncompliant carport.
In 2022, Derric Bonnot hired a friend to build a carport less than a foot from his property line. Had his friend bothered to go through Coppell’s permitting process, he would have been told that location was a non-starter. After the carport was constructed, a code enforcement officer informed Bonnot he had a problem.
Last September, the Board of Adjustment unanimously denied Bonnot’s request for a variance to the rules. In November, only one member of the Planning and Zoning Commission supported Bonnot’s effort to turn his property into a planned development district.
(See “Board of Adjustment Denies Carport Variance” in Vol. 4, No. 29, and “Community Supports Noncompliant Carport” in Vol. 4, No. 40.)
On Jan. 14, Bonnot brought his case to the City Council. He showed them a video to demonstrate that he cannot fit his Ford pickup in his garage alongside his wife’s Kia minivan. He had the carport built to protect his truck from the elements.
“Yes, on paper, it is a two-car garage, but I would argue that’s a false advertisement,” Bonnot said, as he tried to make the case for a property hardship. If he ever puts his house on the market, he said, “I do not feel I can in good conscience promote that I have a two-car garage.”
More than 100 of Bonnot’s neighbors signed a petition supporting his carport, but his next-door neighbor is opposed to it being so close to their shared property line.
“If you guys vote tonight to deny this,” Bonnot told the council, “and I take the roof off, my fence will still be there, and nothing will change for her. Her sight line will be exactly the same; she’ll still be looking at the side of my fence.”
Although several of the council members expressed sympathy for Bonnot’s situation, none of them voted to approve his request. Their Jan. 14 agenda included an executive session before the hearing to discuss “zoning ordinance and accessory structures” with City Attorney Bob Hager, and the council recessed for a private conversation with Hager between the hearing and their unanimous vote. Once that conversation was over, just about every council member had something to say.
“I would hazard a guess that the overwhelming majority of homeowners in Coppell would not want to wake up one day and find a structure of any kind — carport, work shed, whatever it might be — 9 inches off the side of their property line,” Jim Walker said.
Council Member Mark Hill said he felt bad that Bonnot was misled by his friend.
“Any general contractor knows that there are setback requirements on a piece of property,” said Hill, who is an architect. “That’s just basic 101 construction.”
Bonnot expressed frustration during the latest hearing because he pursued the planned development district on the advice of council members, whom he declined to name. When he reached out to these elected officials again after the November hearing, he was “really shocked” when he was told, “‘Yeah, Derric, we’re just not gonna be able to support this, and we would have never been able to support this.’ And when I heard that, I was like, ‘Well, then why did I get sent on this wild goose chase to begin with?’”
Council Member Biju Mathew acknowledged that he had spoken to Bonnot about the carport. Mathew said he bases his council votes on four factors: staff recommendations, the Planning and Zoning Commission’s recommendations, the opinions of residents on either side of the issue, and his own research. “Ultimately, my goal is to make the decisions that are in the best interest of the city,” Mathew said.
Council Member Ramesh Premkumar said he and Bonnot exchanged texts, but he wasn’t sure if they ever spoke. Premkumar echoed Mathew and praised Bonnot for his efforts. “Regardless of how I vote today, I want you to understand that we spent a lot of time trying to find every possible way to help you out,” he said.
Mayor Pro Tem Kevin Nevels also acknowledged speaking with Bonnot. “It is incredibly important to me that every citizen knows what rights and what process and procedure they are entitled to,” Nevels said before thanking Bonnot for participating. “If this does seem like a waste of time to you, I apologize about that.” He said the council is there to listen to all the facts and then make a decision that’s best for the community as a whole.
What’s best for the community as a whole, the council decided, is that Bonnot’s carport must come down.
Flood Control District to Conduct Election
Covering the meetings of the Northwest Dallas County Flood Control District’s board of directors is not easy, for a few reasons:
The meetings almost always start at 11 a.m. on Tuesdays.
Thanks to my full-time job, I’m rarely in Coppell at 11 a.m. on Tuesdays.
Unlike city council and school board meetings, this taxing entity’s proceedings are neither streamed nor recorded.
I missed the board’s meeting on Jan. 7, when their agenda included a resolution to put all three directors’ seats on the May ballot. But I was able to reach the district’s general counsel, Pete Eckert, by phone last week, and he confirmed the resolution was approved.
The district’s website features so little information that it might as well not exist. So I asked Eckert how someone might declare themselves a candidate for one of the three seats. He said that could be done through him, so if you’re inclined to mount a campaign, give him a call at 214-232-0414.
I have no qualms about publishing his phone number, because it is listed on each of the board’s agendas. Those agendas get posted on the county clerk’s website, and they also get taped to the front door of the Oaks Riverchase apartment complex’s clubhouse. That’s where the meetings usually happen.
Last Wednesday, I noticed an agenda had been posted on the clerk’s website touting a special meeting on Friday. The only item on the agenda was an application to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for a waiver related to the district’s stormwater management plan. (Exciting, right?) Because I had been planning to work from home on Friday, I took an early lunch break and drove over to the apartment complex.
I was surprised to find the visitors’ parking lot was empty, but I did notice two pieces of paper taped to the door. One said the Oaks Riverchase leasing office would be closing at 10:30 a.m. “for a company event.” The other was a note from Eckert, advising the public that the 11 a.m. meeting had been moved around the corner to the Riverchase Golf Club.
The Northwest Dallas County Flood Control District keeps providing firsts for me as a journalist. In 2023, I covered my first public hearings with a pop-music soundtrack. Friday was the first time I attended a public meeting in a venue with multiple beers on tap.
If you want to ask Eckert or the board’s three directors — Bennett Ratliff, Wayne Reynolds, and Tex Schmidt — questions about the upcoming election, make plans to attend their next meeting, which is scheduled for 11 a.m. on Feb. 4. It should happen at the apartment complex, but maybe it will be at the golf course. Who knows? There’s only one way to find out.
Council Quashes Quick Quack Car Wash
The idea of a duck-themed car wash on MacArthur Boulevard sounded a bit daffy to some key members of the Irving City Council.
A California company called Quick Quack Car Wash wanted to take over a property across MacArthur from a Kroger, about a block north of the President George Bush Turnpike. But before it could build a car wash on the former site of an Ebby Halliday office, Quick Quack needed to acquire a permit.
The permit was opposed by the three council members who drive that stretch of MacArthur on a daily basis: Mayor Rick Stopfer, who lives in Valley Ranch, and Hackberry Creek residents Brad LaMorgese and Al Zapanta.
“It’s just gonna create a traffic nightmare,” LaMorgese said, on a thoroughfare where “traffic is a killer,” according to Zapanta. Stopfer said they already have “people honking and dodging” on MacArthur due to the backups created by the Chick-fil-A half a mile to the north.
(Transparency in government: LaMorgese and Stopfer both admitted they contribute to the congestion at that Chick-fil-A.)
Quick Quack’s plans called for one lane of entry, which Stopfer said was a bad idea. “We see what happens with Chick-fil-A up there, and they’ve got three lanes coming into that as well,” the mayor said. “And I just think if you have two of those in the same shopping center, you’re gonna have problems.”
Zapanta made the motion to deny the permit, and LaMorgese seconded it. The vote was 7-2, with Luis Canosa and Dennis Webb dissenting.
“It just doesn’t fit,” Zapanta said. “It’s the wrong type of business in that kind of location.”
It is, however, the right type of business for a location not far away. Quick Quack is coming soon to the westbound service road of Interstate 635 at Bryson Road. That property has been a car wash under at least three other brands: Kwik Kar, RPM, and Wash Guys.
Chronicle Crumbs
• A third contender has entered the Coppell ISD Board of Trustees race I wrote about in last week’s edition. Kevin Chaka threw his hat in the ring along with Jonathan Powers and Julie Waters; they’re all competing for the seat Manish Sethi is giving up after seven years. There’s still time for more candidates to join the fray. The filing deadline isn’t until Feb. 14.
• Coppell ISD is seeking people, companies, and organizations that will partner with the district for a Job Shadowing Day, an Adulting Day, and internships. Get more details here.
• As I drove around Coppell this morning, I noticed that work has begun on two of the properties I wrote about last July in an article called “Plans Call for 3 Homes on Mockingbird.” These houses are being built on the land formerly occupied by the Frontenis Center.
• I didn’t see any coyotes while cruising through Rolling Oaks Memorial Center this morning, but I did notice this sign about possible sightings.
Community Calendar
Vanguard Martial Arts Grand Opening: The facility formerly known as Coppell ATA Martial Arts, which is between Urban Air and San Daniele, will host a free community event from 1 to 3 p.m. today.
New Tech @ Night: New Tech High @ Coppell will showcase its students’ projects and achievements between 5:30 and 7 p.m. on Wednesday.
Coppell Baseball Association: Friday is the registration deadline for the spring season. Practices will begin March 3.
Electronic Recycling Event: Members of the Coppell Community Chorale will take unwanted household items off your hands between 9 a.m. and noon on Saturday at the Coppell Arts Center.
Caregiving Heroes: This support group for people who are assisting loved ones with aging or other concerns will meet at 10 a.m. on Saturday at First United Methodist Church of Coppell.
Be Mine, Valentine Dance: Daughters and dads can enjoy one of two masquerade balls at the Coppell Arts Center on Saturday. There will be sessions from 2 to 4 p.m. and from 5 to 7 p.m.
Troop 840 Chili Supper: The annual fundraiser will happen between 5 and 7 p.m. on Saturday at Coppell Middle School North.
Harmonies of Heritage — A Legacy of Melody: Coppell High School’s Varsity Mixed Choir will perform at 6 p.m. on Saturday at First United Methodist Church of Coppell. This show will be a preview of their performance at the Texas Music Educators Association convention in San Antonio.
Coppell Girls Softball Association: Feb. 3 is the registration deadline for the spring season. Practices will begin in mid-March.
You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown: Theatre Coppell will stage nine performances of the musical based on Charles M. Schulz’s beloved “Peanuts” characters. The first show is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Feb. 7 at the Coppell Arts Center.
Broadway in Love: Libby Servais and her husband, Stephan Stubbins, will perform songs from Jersey Boys, Wicked, and other Broadway shows at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 8 at the Coppell Arts Center.
CYFA Community Game: Players from the Coppell Youth Football Association and the Coppell High School varsity team will share the turf at Lesley Field between 3 and 5 p.m. on Feb. 9. Admission is free for spectators.
Coppell Lions Club Pancake Breakfast: The 38th annual event is scheduled from 8 to 11:30 a.m. on Feb. 15 at First United Methodist Church.
Tri-City Neighborhood Summit: Residents of Coppell, Flower Mound, and Lewisville are invited to the Flower Mound Senior Center between 8 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 15, when they can learn how to build stronger neighborhoods and communities.
Midnight Masquerade: The Coppell Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Awards & Community Gala is scheduled from 6 to 10 p.m. on Feb. 15 at the Embassy Suites in Grapevine.
Rhapsody in the Deep Blue Sea: The Coppell Arts Center Foundation’s fundraising gala is scheduled for 7 p.m. on March 1 at the Arts Center.
Dan, Great job! I am going to run for an NWDFCD board spot. Anyone else interested needs to attend the Feb 4th at 11 am meeting at Riverchase club house to fill out a form from Pete Eckert. For more information call Pete at 214-232-0414 Evidently the 3 board incumbent members filed for te election on Jan 15th. If an election is held, it should be on May 3. Mike
Lots of interesting stuff, Dan! 👍