On Tuesday, the Coppell City Council swore in three new council members alongside the new fire chief, and following a round of proclamations, reviewed a funding request from Metrocrest Services through a presentation of its annual achievements.
Council members Jim Walker, Don Carroll and Ramesh Premkumar were elected into Places 1, 3 and 5, respectively. They were each sworn into the council, surrounded by family and under recital of the oath. Then, for the first time in 26 years, the council swore in a new fire chief, Ryan Arthur.
“My main goal in this entire process is to keep this tradition and the things that have been laid in the foundation. We want to keep growing, keep moving forward,” Arthur said. “Just know that our work within our administration and the city is to ensure that you have the tools and resources needed to provide the service to all of the community.”
Gabe Madison, the recently appointed chief executive officer for Metrocrest Services, addressed the Coppell City Council for the first time, presenting an annual report of the mission, achievements, goals and funding request of Metrocrest Services. Throughout the presentation, Madison placed an emphasis on Metrocrest’s mission: “To empower individuals to achieve self-sufficiency and foster independence.”
Madison, on behalf of Metrocrest Services, requested $196,625, an amount identical to that requested the previous year, despite an estimated uptick in costs.
“We start with a ‘yes’ attitude, and the reason why I call that out is because so many of our neighbors are hearing no on a regular basis,” Madison said. “It’s important for our team to say yes as much as we can so that we can encourage and help them to see the opportunity towards self sufficiency.”
The first proclamation recognized the Coppell High School cheerleaders for winning back-to-back National Cheerleaders Association national championships as the city designated May 12, 2026 as “Coppell High School Cheer Day.” The following proclamations and presentations designated the month of May as “National Water Safety Month” and the week of May 17-23 as “Emergency Medical Services Week.”
CHS head cheer coach Lindsey Bates addressed the council and audience with pride discussing the cheerleaders’ accomplishments.
“Winning nationals is hard. Winning it two times is hard. Winning it back-to-back is almost impossible,” Bates said. “They put everything that I asked for them into it to make sure they accomplished that, and I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
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