Coppell Chronicle Vol. 6, No. 7
Chaka’s Funds Outpace Windham’s Fourfold • Coppell ISD Welcomes Neighbors to Enroll • Town Center Elementary Will Get New Roof • Passover Options Shrink at Coppell Stores
Happy Easter to all who celebrate. If you’re reading this at church, put your phone away and pay attention to the sermon.
Chaka’s Funds Outpace Windham’s Fourfold
Candidates in local elections owed us reports on their campaigns’ finances by April 2, because that was 30 days prior to Election Day. Some candidates met that deadline, but others did not. Let’s dive into the available information.
Coppell ISD Board of Trustees Place 5
Kevin Chaka of Coppell and Khanh Windham of Irving are competing to succeed David Caviness, who is leaving the school board after three terms.
Windham’s report says she raised $2,251 from 25 contributors. Her most generous supporter was her mother, Khue Pham of West Palm Beach, Fla., who gave $250. Other top contributors were Coppell residents whose names should be familiar to anyone who follows Coppell ISD elections. Windham’s campaign treasurer, Julie Albright, contributed $220; she was followed by Rosie Stevens ($206), Lian Loop ($200), and Jennifer Newton (also $200).
Although Windham’s report is on the Coppell ISD website, Chaka’s is not. He forwarded me the email he sent to Carol Snowden, the administrative assistant who oversees the district’s elections, at 12:40 a.m. on April 2. But Snowden was out of the office that day, and apparently none of her colleagues could upload the report in her absence. That makes what you’re about to read a Coppell Chronicle exclusive!
Chaka’s report says he raised $10,280 from 41 contributors besides himself. Chaka gave $2,000 to his own campaign, and his father, Sid Chaka of Katy, contributed $1,000. The report also details $600 donations from eight Coppell residents: Jeffrey Benavidez, Christopher Blanton, Christopher Bryan, Dustin Degroff, Niko Leinonen, Dominic Nevarez, Arun Prasath, and Lui Tai.
Early voting will begin on April 20, and I plan to publish the candidates’ answers to a questionnaire in the April 19 edition. In the interim, you have multiple opportunities to hear them in person.
Women for Democracy will host a forum at 5:30 p.m. on April 7 at the Cozby Library and Community Commons.
The district’s PTO presidents will host a forum at 6:30 p.m. on April 8 in the Coppell High School lecture hall.
The Coppell Chamber of Commerce will host a forum at 6 p.m. on April 15 at Dallas College’s Coppell Center.
What follows are summaries of finance reports filed by other candidates trying to win votes from residents of Coppell and Coppell ISD.
Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD Board of Trustees
Carolyn Benavides of Carrollton, Dave Jimenez of Coppell, Cinthya Noda of Farmers Branch, and Luis Palomo of Carrollton are competing for the two seats held by Benavides and Randy Schackmann. Each voter will get two votes, and you can give both of them to the same candidate if you’d like.
Although there’s a designated space on the CFBISD website for each candidate’s financial report, those spaces are all empty.
Irving Mayor
City Council Member Al Zapanta is running for mayor, as are Olivia Elizabeth Novelo Abreu and Zhanae Jackson. (Rick Stopfer has to give up the position due to Irving’s term limits.)
The only financial information in Zapanta’s report is that his campaign was loaned $2,165. The lender’s name was not included.
Abreu also listed zero contributions, but her report says she loaned her own campaign $150. It also says she spent $10 worth of personal funds on a McDonald’s meal for a photographer. (I’m loving it!)
The city’s website does not include a report from Jackson.
Irving City Council District 6
Because he’s running for mayor, Zapanta has to give up his seat representing District 6, which includes the vast majority of the Irving portion of Coppell ISD. Three candidates are vying to fulfill the remaining year of Zapanta’s term: Fahad Ahmed, Dana Collins, and Sushil Patel.
Ahmed’s report says he loaned his own campaign $13,600. It also says he raised about $1,974 from six individuals; the most generous donors were Irving residents Ali Anwar and Zubair Patel, who each gave $500. Additionally, Ahmed reported $22,600 worth of in-kind contributions, the bulk of which were attributed to Blueprint Business Partners in Flower Mound. That firm is credited with $6,500 worth of website development, $5,000 worth of videography and editing, and $3,500 worth of social media management.
The city’s website does not have reports for Collins and Patel.
Irving City Council District 3
Abdul Khabeer represents District 3, which includes the Parkside West subdivision within Coppell ISD. He’s facing two challengers: Tamman Alwan and Kejal Patel.
A summary page on Alwan’s report says he received $10,620 worth of monetary donations, but when I tallied the report’s 17 itemized contributions, they totaled $8,500. I can’t account for the difference of $2,120.
Those itemized contributions include $1,000 donations from five individuals — Salman Faiz of Schaumburg, Ill.; Gulan Moinuddin Jeddy of Coppell; Ashraf Motiwala of Irving; Kareem Rabaa of Clawson, Mich.; and Zohaib Salim of Irving. Alwan donated $500 to his campaign, as did three others, including Sergio Porres, who was a candidate for Irving’s City Council last year. An additional $500 from Alwan was categorized as a loan.
Patel’s report is much simpler. It says she raised $617.40 from two individuals — Mickey Shah of Irving contributed $514.50, and Harmeet Mann of Keller kicked in $102.90.
The only financial information in Khabeer’s report says he spent $3,523 worth of personal funds on signs, banners, push cards, and business cards.
Coppell ISD Welcomes Neighbors to Enroll
Coppell ISD is loosening the limits on its limited open enrollment policy, with the number of eligible households set to nearly double.
This school year, the policy applied to students residing in 3,484 houses and apartments in Coppell, Irving, and Lewisville that are outside the district’s boundaries. Next school year, that number will grow to 6,686 homes.