Coppell Chronicle Vol. 6, No. 22
Tesla Robotaxis Hub Coming to North Irving • McDonald’s Celebrates Reopening With Gifts • 10-Foot Statue Installed at Coppell Dog Park • Demolition of Neglected Mansion Scheduled
At first, I thought an email I received last week was a prank. It was an invitation to speak at the annual conference of the Cat Writers’ Association. But after confirming that the Cat Writers’ Association is an actual organization, with a conference scheduled for Nov. 6-7 in Fort Worth, I accepted the invitation to discuss “building a successful Substack publication.”
I want this Substack publication to be even more successful by the time the cat writers convene that conference, so if you’re a free subscriber, meow would be a great time to upgrade to a paid subscription.
Tesla Robotaxis Hub Coming to North Irving
Thousands of autonomous cars will flow to and from a property in the Irving portion of Coppell ISD.
On July 16, the Irving City Council approved a zoning change that will allow Tesla to build a hub for its robotaxis at 4203 W. Royal Lane, which is just south of Interstate 635, between Freeport Parkway and Belt Line Road. The vote was 8-0, with Council Member Adam Muller being absent.
This case was on a council agenda in May, but the decision was postponed at the request of Irving’s fire and police chiefs, who wanted more time to learn about how they would deal with autonomous vehicles.
“Thank you all for putting your confidence and faith in your chiefs and making sure that we’re ready and prepared,” Fire Chief Victor Conley told the council last week. “I appreciate that very much.”
(See “Tesla Robotaxis Hub Proposed in North Irving” in Vol. 6, No. 12.)
Tesla facilitated three days of training last week for Irving’s firefighters, who invited their peers from Coppell, Grapevine, Grand Prairie, and DFW Airport to participate. Assistant Fire Chief Hilton Barlow, who oversees training in Irving, told the City Council he couldn’t think of another company that’s been as welcoming and prepared as Tesla.
“They are totally ‘first responder friendly’ and want to put first responders and city safety at the forefront of their autonomous vehicles,” Barlow said.
Michael Hioe, an architecture and design manager for Tesla, told the council in May that the Irving hub could accommodate 1,000 vehicles initially, but that could eventually ramp up to between 4,000 and 5,000. However, Hioe said last week that Tesla already has six similar facilities across the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
“We don’t intend to kind of flood just this subject site with a ton of cars,” Hioe said. “We intend to utilize our existing network so it doesn’t congest just this subject site too much.”
In addition to training Irving’s firefighters, Tesla also provided at least two of the city’s elected officials with firsthand exposure to its technology. Mayor Al Zapanta said he and City Council Member Luis Canosa took a ride in a robotaxi, which was a new experience for the mayor.
“It’s really something to watch and see how that technology is actually working,” Zapanta said.
Fahad Ahmed — who recently succeeded Zapanta as north Irving’s representative on the City Council — let everyone know that he’s a Tesla customer. He owns a Model Y, and here’s why I didn’t say he drives his Model Y: “I touch my steering wheel about 3 percent of the time; I have a 97 percent rating of FSD,” said Ahmed, who used Tesla’s abbreviation for “full self-driving.”
Despite his admiration for Tesla’s products, Ahmed brought up incidents when autonomous vehicles hindered first responders’ activities, and he had questions about how the cars would be remotely controlled. Ahmed received assurances from Christine Garcia, a field safety engineer for Tesla who previously worked as a police officer and firefighter.
“The last thing we want to have happen is that we block an ambulance at an active shooter,” Garcia said. “That is something that crosses my mind all of the time that one of our competitors did.”
Garcia was referencing an Austin incident that happened last March, when a Waymo vehicle prevented an ambulance from reaching the scene of a shooting. Similarly, a Waymo vehicle blocked the path of a Dallas County constable in May as he tried to respond to a deadly explosion in Oak Cliff. Garcia said Waymo outsources its remote support to another country, whereas Tesla’s remote support staff are in Texas.
Regardless of whether self-driving cars are operated by Waymo or Tesla or any other company, Conley assured the City Council that no autonomous vehicle will prevent his firefighters from doing their job.
“I will not hesitate to tell my people to push those cars out of the way and get on in there,” the fire chief said. “The biggest vehicle on the road is gonna win, and we’re gonna get in there and help our people when they need us.”
McDonald’s Celebrates Reopening With Gifts
When the newly built McDonald’s on Denton Tap Road opened its doors before dawn on July 15, at least three dozen people were waiting outside. The ones who got there earliest were rewarded for their dedication.
Cliff Johnson — the Coppell High School graduate who owns and operates that McDonald’s along with his sister, Jessica Johnson — showed up shortly before 5 a.m. to pass out gift cards. Some customers received Visa cards that can be used anywhere; others were handed “Arch Cards” that are good only at McDonald’s.
Alex Bunt and Layton McCown, a pair of CHS graduates who are enrolled at the University of Arkansas, were among the first people through the door. Bunt planned to order a McGriddle with sausage, egg, and cheese, while McCown had his heart set on hotcakes. A few minutes later, Bunt showed me his receipt that included the phrase “Order 01.”