NL Cypress-CS080905
N oRIN t Ati:-.--- c' yprE-.. fljA IFI'c~-:
50 cents
"
:ens
flNG COPPELL, VALLEY RANCH AND HACKBERRY CREEK SINCE 1984
I Her
lr Gold
~how off the trophy,
at the U. S. Eques-
1m Championships.
lonal pony jumping
SEF's Zone 7, which
.Aluisiana, Oklahoma,
Cansas and Arkansas.
which is judged on
nd accuracy, requires
:0 12 jumps per round
s over rails more than
ot of jumps-it's a lot
said Briel, who was
1 pressure after Sky
Ie with a hind-end in-
JUf days before the
~r veterinary care in-
Ipuncture and laser
ould hardly walk,"
"She had all kinds of
done to her."
e GOLD on page 11
TEUS PRESS ISSICIATII. IIEfaDI
VOLUME XXIV, NO. 36
City, Coppell ISD Sign Final
North Lake Settlement
By Jane Moore
After a four-year legal
quagmire, a truce in the battle
for North Lake came down
Wednesday, when the City of
Coppell and the School District
signed a settlement that divides
the controversial 1,700 acres of
former power plant property at
North Lake among the City,
CISD, and Billingsley Company,
with a small portion to Luminant
energy.
The City and CISD had
signed the document at press
time Wednesday and were wait-
ing on the other parties before
releasing specific details. How-
ever, officials said the agreement
addresses many residents' con-
cerns, induding a master plan for
the entire I, 700 acres, and land
for schools and other public uses.
The School District, which
had already won a condemnation
case for purchase of 125 acres
on the property, will get about the
same amount, although not all in
the same locations it originally
sought. However, Superinten-
dent Jeff Turner said the loca-
tions designated in the settlement .
would be suitable.
"I feel confident that we can
construct school facilities on
those sites," Turner said.
City Manager Jim Witt con-
firmed that the City would pur-
chase hundreds of acres, includ-
ing lake acreage. The lake com-
prises about 600 acres.
"If the deal does go through,
the City of Coppell will be ac-
quiring a substantial amount of
acreage in accordance with the
legal substance of the settle-
see NORTH LAKE on page 11
CEMETERY WORK PROGRESSES
photo by Haley Moore
Work is well underway on Coppell's new cemetery on Freeport Parkway, across from Wagon
Wheel Park.
To Appear
I..~
E -r,.-.,. f-:;
'" "j . I :<
,""! I '-.J ",', -..-J
GOLD
from page 1
But everything came to-
gether for the finals, with Sky
"pulling" just one rail in the first
round and none in the second
round, when the Zone 7 team
was called back to compete
against teams from three other
zones from across the U.S.
Zone 7 finished with a time of
188.037 seconds - 17 seconds
faster than the second place
team. The win was huge for
Zone 7, which had never
medaled in the pony jumping
competition.
"We were shocked," said
Briel, who didn't know the other
team members, who were from
Louisiana and Texas and like
Briel, had never competed in
national pony jumping before.
"This was our first time in pony
jumping, so it was kind offun to
have beginners luck," she said.
Luck might have been a fac-
tor, but Briel has a passion for
horses that dates back to a one-
week summer camp six years
ago, when she cried because she
was afraid the pony she had been
riding would forget her. Her
parents, Gary and Janet Briel,
signed her up for more camps,
and gave her Sky for her twelfth
birthday. Now Briel, who has
off-campus P.E. and no seventh
period class at CHS, spends five
to six days a week at Windswept
Farm in Argyle, where she keeps
Sky and another horse, En-
lighten, (aka "Scout), who she
competes in other events. Her
trainer is Debbie Di Vecchia,
who Briel said is "the best."
She loves riding and the relation-
ship she has developed with the
horses.
"It's a team effort, and it's
really fun when nobody can ride
your horse like you can," she
said.
When she's not jumping with
a horse, Briel does some jump-
ing on her own with the CHS
cross country team, where she
competes in hurdles as well as
relay events. She was also a
high jumper at CMS North.
Briel maintains good grades
at CHS, and although things get
hectic during track season, she
enjoys everything about her life
with horses.
\LJ.ntl!etUi ~ttade. LIVING. SEPTEMBER 5,2008
NORTH LAKE
from page 1
ment," Witt said.
Billingsley will continue with
development, but density will be
lower, according to City and
CISD officials. Even with a
maximum build out of 10,000
residential units, it will be spread
out over a much larger space
than the original plan, which com-
prised only 350 acres. The ex-
act acreage Billingsley would get
in the deal was not available at
press time. Luminant reportedly
will keep a small amount of prop-
erty adjacent to the power plant.
The exact costs of the settle-
ment had not yet been disclosed,
but Turner said the $9 million
CISD set aside for buying the
land through condemnation
would not be enough.
"We have to look at ways to
finance," Turner said.
Based on 1 0,000 residential
units-the reported maximum
number that Billingsley would
construct in the entire area-- the
development could potentially
add 2,500 students or more to the
District at build out. Turner said
the Billingsley has indicated plans
to build about 500 units per year.
It is unclear when construction
would begin.
The City already has voter
authorization to spend $23 mil-
lion to $30 million for property
acquisition at North Lake and did
not indicate it would need more
money.
Mayor Doug Stover said the
settlement, which would put an
end to the ongoing land-use dis-
pute, was a "win-win" for all par-
ties concerned and good for the
entire geographic area.
"I feel like a tremendous
weight has been lifted off the
City of Coppell and this region
of the Metroplex," Stover said.
"We found a very favorable light
at the end of the tunnel." Stover
also expressed appreciation to
Witt, Deputy City Manager Clay
Phillips, and Mayor Pro-tern
Marvin Franklin for their work
on the issue, and said Luminant
had been a "good corporate citi-
zen" by bringing the parties to-
gether.
The settlement was probably
hastened by the approaching
September 8 trial in the condem-
nation case, in which a jury would
have decided how much CISD
would pay Billingsley for the 125
acres it had won the right to take.
"The closer you get to trial,
I think both sides try harder,"
Turner said.
HIGHLIGHTS
from page 2
Representatives of some of
the nation's largest brokerage
houses testified at the hearing.
All pretty much agreed that the
Texas Lottery could become
more profitable, and that
privatization is worth
a look.
Lawmakers also heard anti-
gambling testimony.
Sen. Jane Nelson, R-
LewisviUe, said she would want
to make sure revenue from
privatizing the lottery goes to fund
education.
LBJ centennial is marked
On Aug. 27, the lOOth anni-
versary of the late President
Lyndon B. Johnson's birth was
celebrated in Austin and at the
Johnson family ranch in Stone-
wall. The LBJ Library and Mu-
seum staged a birthday party and
launched "Space," anewdisplay
POLICE
from page 7
tween $1,500 and $20,000, mo-
torcycle stolen, 1300 block
Riverchase Dr., 3:49 p.m.
August 18: Theft of property
between $50 and $500, city
property stolen, 234 E. Parkway,
5:56 p.m.
August 18: Burglary of
building, 445 S. Royal Ln., 8:54
p.m.
August 21: Public intoxica-
tion, 32-year-old male arrested
with three prior convictions, 100
W. Sandy Lake Rd., 11:14 p.m.
August 22: Burglary of
building, 1405 S. Belt Line Rd.,
9:30 a.m.
August 22: Burglary ofhabi-
tation, 400 block Halifax Dr.,
5:20p.m.
August 22: Burglary of ve-
hicle, 100 block E. Natches
Trace Dr., 5:29 p.m.
AUQ'ust ?? Po""",,,,,;,," "i'
First United Methoc
Grief and Divorce
All children need love an
security in their family relati{
the family trauma of divorce,
invites you to enroll them in
(Kids of Peace). Ifyourchildi
death of a loved one, you are i
port for Kids Group (Kids of
dential and safe place for kids
times.
Both of these groups will
weeks, Sunday evenings 5:00-(;
9. Please contact Rev. Jennif
(972) 462-0471, ext. 208. **Tl
Wednesday, September 10, 20<
The church also offers Sl
enrolled in our 7-week sessio
These workshops are offered in
that will be offered at the sam
Divorce or Grief Recovery c
kbaker@fumccoppel1.orgor(97
First United Methodist Churl
Coppell. Visit us ,
NO~
of Tax Revt
The City of Coppe
ings on August 26, 20(
on a proposal to incre:
of the City of Coppel
tax roll in the precedir
The total tax reven
year's tax rate of $0.(
taxable value was $29,
The total tax revem
this year at the propos
for each $100 of taxal
revenue to be raised fr
to the tax roll this year,
The total tax revem
this year at the proposl
for each $100 of taxal
revenue to be raised fn
to the tax roll this year,
The Council of Cit