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Attorney Rep Letter BRACkETT & Ellis A PRofEssioNAl CORpORATiON ATTORNEYS ANd COUNSElORS 100 MAiN STREET FORT WORTH, TX 76102-7090 RONAld l. AdAMS A. WilliAM BRACkm HARRy M. BRANTS lANfT 5 BubERT BRUCE S. CAMpbEll J~EpH F. C1mIANd. JR HEATH CoIIM'" ANdREA ComEII JAMES A CREEi LAURA W. DockeR KElly M DodSON JosepH A. DRA40 HENRI J. DussAulT LU1HER W Ellis CARTER l. FrRl;uSON D. AlEXANdER HARREll RiCHARd H. CATEIEY CRAIl; GiPSON ClAudiNE G. JACkSON THEodORe MACk R. BRUC E MOON ElAINe S. MORRis THoMAS f MYERS RUS'f1l J. NORMENT Scor PiERCE ApRil F. RobbiNS MicHAEll. ScHNEidERMAN Ly," ROSSi Scon Cob, D. SMiTH AiMEE l. STONE lAMES M. WHlno, (B17) 77B-1700 METRO (817) 429-9181 FACSiMilE (817) 870-2265 WEb SiTE: WWW.bElAW.COM DiRECT DiAl & E-MAil (BI7) m.2464 bcon(cVbflAw.COM June 10,2009 City of Coppell Mayor & City Council 255 Parkway Blvd. Coppell, Texas 75019 Mayor and City Council: This law firm represents Manara Academy, as well as a number of other public independent school districts and public charter schools in Texas. As you know, Manara Academy has submitted an application for a Special Use Permit to the City of Coppell. The request was recommended for approval by the City staff, but was denied by the Planning and Zoning Commission. Manara Academy has appealed that denial because it appears clear that the Planning & Zoning Commission made its decision based on inaccurate information and undue political pressure arising from inaccurate information. This letter is an attempt to ensure that the City Council has accurate information about the request it is considering and about Manara's plans. The request currently pending before the Council is for a one-year special use permit to operate a public, open-enrollment charter school at 140 S. Heartz Road for grades K-5, with a student enrollment not to exceed 326 and with a bus loop added on the property's entrance off of Heartz Road, so that car and bus traffic will not merge on the property. The building had housed Christ Our Savior Lutheran School, a private school, which had, at one time, approximately 400 students, and which currently houses a private school. Although the private school's enrollment numbers have significantly decreased in recent years, Manara Academy's planned one-year use will not exceed the enrollment numbers already experienced on this property. Manara Academy has worked diligently with the City staff to resolve all of the staffs concerns related to the Academy's use of this property. The Academy conducted a traffic - impact study i even though the planned. use was comparable to the prior ana current use of the building. We agreed to construct a new bus loop so that bus and car traffic would be separated, although the traffic study found a negligible impact. That revised site plan has been submitted. As a result, it is our understanding that the staff is recommending approval of the revised permit request, with no additional conditions. We greatly appreciate the staffs support and guidance through this process, and we urge approval by the City Council. As I am sure you are aware, a charter school is a public school under Texas law. The charter granted to Manara Academy by the Texas Education Agency is for grades K-8, with a maximum enrollment of 500. Because it is a public school, Manara Academy is generally exempt from the City's zoning regulations, with the exception of those city codes and ordinances related to health and safety. The Texas Education Code Section 12.1 03(a) clearly states that a charter school is subject to the municipal zoning ordinances which cover public schools. Therefore, prior City decisions related to the Coppell ISO schools should control this issue, not prior City Council decisions related to private schools or businesses. As you know, the City's ability to zone public schools is limited. In Austin Independent School District v. City of Sunset Valley, 502 S. W.2d 670 (Tex. 1973), the Texas Supreme Court addressed a city ordinance that restricted all properties within the city limits to residential use only. The Austin ISO, which owned property within the city, decided to locate its athletic facilities (including a football stadium) and bus garaging center adjacent to an existing school site. The question before the Texas Supreme Court was whether the zoning powers of a city could wholly exclude school facilities within its boundaries. The Court held that a public school is immune from zoning ordinances, as long as its acts are reasonable. As you also know, the City's ability to regulate use of public school land is limited strictly to health and safety issues. In Port Arthur Independent School District v. City of Groves, 376 S. W.2d 330 (Tex. 1964), the Texas Supreme Court ruled that school districts are subject to reasonable ordinances of the city, related to the health and safety of the community. Applying these rulings to the present situation, Manara Academy has complied and will comply with all of the zoning and planning procedures and requirements of the City, including following the special use permit process and incorporating a bus loop on the premises, at significant expense to the Academy, and in doing so, has satisfied all legitimate health and safety concerns. Following an in-depth independent traffic study, which was reviewed by the City and an independent expert retained by the City, Manara has established that the impact of its use of the property on traffic in the surrounding area does not violate the standards already established for "quality of service" on the surrounding streets. The Academy's representatives have seen the emails and letters soliciting opposition to the special use permit. You have, no doubt, seen them also. Unfortunately, these solicitations include inaccurate and misleading information. First, these communications suggest that the increased traffic created by the Academy's use of this property will create a safety hazard for the neighborhood. However, the City's own traffic engineer has confirmed that the level of service on the neighboring streets will remain within the standards adopted for the City of 2 CoppelL According to the traffic impact study, that remains true even if the Academy were to expand its enrollment to the maximum 500 students allowed under its charter. Second, these solicitations raise unsubstantiated speculations about the Academy's future plans. The Academy's charter is for grades K-8. It has no plans to expand beyond these grade levels. Third, these solicitations presume a long-term use. Manara has a one-year lease. While Manara may want to consider a longer-term use in the future, that is not before the City Council at this time. Should it come up in the future, the City Council can consider it at that time. Fourth, these solicitations imply a sinister use of the school. That could not be further from the truth, as Manara Academy will operate as a public school using an Expeditionary Learning curriculum, with a school culture that teaches compassion and good citizenship. The Academy is also concerned that media coverage of the school has strongly suggested that the Academy plans to focys on religious-based instruction. That is not the case. Manara Academy is a public school that is fully accountable to the Texas Education Agency. As a result, the Academy is subject to the First Amendment's establishment clause and the prohibition on the promotion or endorsement of religion in public schools. While two foreign languages will be taught, French and Arabic, these languages were chosen because they are two of the top six languages at the UN, and they are not generally offered in public elementary schools in this state. One of the reasons that the charter school was approved was because of its innovation and unique academic offerings within the state of Texas. Manara Academy is not a religious school. It is a public school. Manara Academy officials have received emails which further indicate that a potential religious, ethnic or national origin bias has motivated at least some of the opposition against approval of Manara Academy's special use permit, perhaps in response to misinformation about the intended curriculum of the Academy. Specifically, one email stated: "I received your email in the letter you sent inviting us to a neighborhood forum. I am a very concerned resident of Coppell. I am one of the 'neighbors' that you want to be welcome to. [sic] I along with a couple of other residents are very opposed to you joining our neighborhood for the simple fact you are muslim. We do not want this in our community. Sure traffic may be a small issue but the real reason is that you don't belong here. Very concerned residents of H eartz. " Manara Academy is confident that the members of the City Council fully appreciate that such a discriminatory bias cannot form the basis for a decision on a permit application for a public school. However, the Academy also believes that it is important to expose the potential bias which may be motivating the neighborhood opposition. Particularly in light of the fact that Manara Academy has no plans or intention to offer or endorse a religious-based, foreign nationality-based, or ethnicity-based curriculum of any kind, such opposition is unfounded and discriminatory. Manara Academy has every intention of being a good and respectful neighbor to the other residents of Coppell. Manara' s intended use of the property as a school is completely consistent with the past use of the property. All concerns related to health and safety issues have been resolved, and the City staff has not identitied any current health or safety codes, ordinances, or concerns that would be violated by the approval of the pending application. In 3 - fact, City staff is recommending approval. We further urge you to not delay your approval. Manara plans to open its doors in August 2009, and can only receive funding from the Texas Education Agency once it starts operating as a charter school. Therefore, time is of the essence, and any further delay will cost Manara a great deal of monetary damage. Therefore, Manara Academy respectfully requests that the City Council support its application for a special use permit. Sincerely, J~. 317655.1 4 .