Coppell considers building veterans memorial

A rendering of the potential design concept for a Veterans Memorial in Coppell.
Courtesy of Olsson Studio

Coppell Gazette
By Arianna Morrison | Star Local Media
April 26, 2023

Coppell City Council met on Tuesday, April 25 to receive a presentation and discuss the potential for a veterans memorial in the city.

In recent years, there have been community requests for a Veterans Memorial and a dedicated space to hold events and ceremonies as well as provide education relating to military service. Recognizing this as a need, city council opted to fund the construction of a memorial in the fiscal year 2022-2023 budget.

The public input process for this project began with a focus group of community members, with an emphasis on veterans. Participants in the focus group were nominated by city council members and solicited to participate through the city’s social media channels. It was not a requirement that focus group members be veterans themselves.

The first focus group meeting was held on Feb. 23 and then reconvened on March 31 to review potential design concepts for the veterans memorial.

“The feedback from the first focus group was used to provide direction to our design consultant, Olsson Studio,” said Jessica Carpenter, director of community experiences. “Once the feedback was delivered and conceptual designs were prepared, members of the original focus group reconvened at that March 31 date to review the design concepts and they landed on one they liked during that meeting.”

The focus group was asked to reflect on their military service and envision what a veterans memorial may look like in Coppell. The group discussed proposed locations, design elements and how the space could be used for events.

Olsson Studio created conceptual designs for a “Veterans Plaza” to be located in the plaza area behind Coppell Town Center. The design would include no individual veteran names, have all six branches of the military represented, have flags, lighting and seating, and have interactive elements and storytelling.

A rendering of the potential design concept for a Veterans Memorial in Coppell. Courtesy of Olsson Studio
The parks and recreation board also reviewed the concepts at its April meeting and received an update on the feedback from the focus group. After review and discussion, the parks and recreation board selected the same design concept and location as the focus group.

Next steps include preparing a bid for documents for construction of the memorial, rededicating the Town Center Plaza to “Veterans Plaza, adding a new Veterans Day Ceremony, awarding construction at a future council meeting, and coming up with a consensus on the design concept and location.