What is so great about Coppell ? (Dallas, Plano: apartments, custom home, high schools)

[napervilletodallas]

I am relocating to Dallas and we are looking at Coppell mostly for the schools. Can you all tell what is good and bad about Coppell ?

Thanks

[napervilletodallas]

Given the lack of interest this post has generated I guess Coppell is either a pretty dull place or no one in the Dallas area is familiar with it.

[portyhead24]

Here's my experience with this Haven of Suburbia. Cops pull over people on the highway that borders their town. Take lots of their money and then build their perfect little Utopia with it.

[napervilletodallas]

So then it is a perfect Utopia with a speed trap. There must be more to the place than that.

[momof2dfw]

Originally Posted by napervilletodallas

Given the lack of interest this post has generated I guess Coppell is either a pretty dull place or no one in the Dallas area is familiar with it.

No, just a busy day and time of year. Sorry.

I've known Coppell since it was a sleepy little enclave of really nice custom homes on acreage lots w/ lots of trees. Now it is MUCH more but more subdivisions and strip malls. It is close to the airport if you need to go there often (only downside is the planes may be overhead really low). Still it has some very nice homes and is not a large city like Plano or such. The schools in Coppell are very good. One reason so is because the voters always approve bonds everytime something comes up. They have not let stuff slip by waiting until it was too late and would cost more when it comes to schools and roads.

[momof2dfw]

Originally Posted by portyhead24

Here's my experience with this Haven of Suburbia. Cops pull over people on the highway that borders their town. Take lots of their money and then build their perfect little Utopia with it.

Just don't speed, run red lights or stop signs, have a properly working vehicle (brake lights, etc) and you won't have to worry about the cops stopping you.

[nativeDallasite]

I used to live in north Irving; Coppell always seemed like a nice, quiet place but it's a bit far from the action if you work in Dallas or Plano/Richardson. There's nothing really wrong with it, but I hear their schools have slipped somewhat standards-wise.

[napervilletodallas]

I saw an article in US News that rated Coppell HS very highly. What have you heard about schools ?

It sounds like Coppell is a quiet bedroom community.

[momof2dfw]

Originally Posted by napervilletodallas

I saw an article in US News that rated Coppell HS very highly. What have you heard about schools ?

It sounds like Coppell is a quiet bedroom community.

It USED to be. Then it got discovered. Back in the 80's and late 70's Northlake Estates in Coppell was THE place to be. Beautiful custom homes on large lots w/ tons of towering trees. In the late 80's is when the typical suburban tract home developments started popping up along w/ apartments. Coppell is pretty much at build out. The main roads USED to be two lane blacktops now they are 4-6 lane major thoroughfares w/ the typical strip shopping centers at the intersections. The traffic even w/in the city is somewhat congested nowadays because of all of the people and development. With Hwy 190 (aka George Bush Turnpike) Coppell does have easier access to the highways. Before that it was a trek off the highway and down the small roads to get there. Still can be a PITA to get in and out of because it is somewhat "tucked away" depending on which direction one is going. With the people came the developments of the shopping centers w/ your average grocery stores and such and more restaurants but not a WHOLE LOT of restaurants. The Dairy Queen is still there and DQ along w/ the Italian place used to be the only places to eat at in town.

I know someone that works for the city and she likes it. She is the one who told me that the citizens approve every bond that comes along which is a good thing if you have ever experienced a place that does not. They can keep up with the demand BEFORE it is a dire need. Same w/ the schools when it comes to approving bonds for expansions. As for the quality of the schools when it comes to high schools there are VERY FEW that are going to get high rankings when it comes to the TAKS test rating system. With a diverse society it can really hinder a school and bring it down even though it could be a sub-group population of something as low as 5-10 students. If that minority sub-group does poorly on one portion of the TAKS test the whole school gets marked WAY DOWN.

[Lakewooder]

You may have heard Coppell High got an academically unacceptable rating a year or two ago and appealed - it was granted acceptable status. But I wouldn't let that influence you because the ratings are screwy - and very few high schools are able to go above that to recognized or exemplary, especially if they have the diversity of all the subgroups (each group must pass by a certain percentage).

Another reason you might have heard something about the schools sliding is that there is an large area just south of Northlake which is in the city of Dallas (but Coppell ISD) and is to be developed as a huge apartment development. Coppell is fighting that but I'm not sure how they can win.

We used to call Coppell the 'river bottoms' behind Sandy Lake -- I'm sure I'll take some flack for that but that's what people used to say before it was developed.