The Dallas City Council unanimously approved an agreement on Wednesday to lease a 20-acre property at the University of North Texas at Dallas to build its new police academy, despite several uncertainties looming over the project.
The new academy will include a facility for the university’s criminal justice program, an outdoor training area, a defensive tactics building with an indoor track and parking spaces, according to city documents. The agreement is for 40 years, with construction expected to start in 2026.
Plans for the project have shifted this year, but the latest iteration at UNT Dallas harkens back to the city’s original goal.
UNT Dallas President Dr. Warren von Eschenbach told The Dallas Morning News the college campus was “tremendously excited about the opportunity to elevate law enforcement training and education in ways that are beneficial to both the city and the university.”
The partnership, he said, would provide advanced instruction and high-quality evaluation of effective policing. Students could be offered pathways to law enforcement and public safety professions, while faculty members can do research, data analysis, leadership training and degree programs for officers and new recruits.
The campus in southern Dallas had been billed since 2021 as the training site for future Dallas police hires. The News revealed in February the city quietly changed plans and was looking outside of UNT Dallas for a site to train new recruits, despite millions of dollars already committed.
Since then, plans continued to change. The latest version includes a training academy at UNT Dallas for recruits and officers already in service, as well as a 60-acre complex with a driving track and shooting range that could be built near Wilmer-Hutchins High School in southeast Oak Cliff.
The estimated price tag of the project is now $275 million — an increase from estimates laid out as recently as February of more than $140 million. The city has secured about $96.5 million and hopes to cover the gap with real estate sales and private fundraising.
The City Council did not discuss the surging costs, fundraising gap or the undecided location for the public safety complex Wednesday. Mayor Eric Johnson said in a statement after the vote that the UNT Dallas academy “will equip hundreds of officers” with needed training and tools.
“This state-of-the-art facility,” Johnson said, “will also strengthen our Police Department’s recruitment efforts, helping us hire more officers and provide them with the best training possible to ensure that Dallas is the safest major city in America.”
The current police academy in Red Bird has been a pain point for years for officers. It spans 63 acres across two sites in industrial warehouses. Mold and sweat, weathered training rooms, insufficient storage and limited parking spots spurred talk about a new state-of-the-art facility.
Three residents voiced opposition during public comment, demanding transparency after the estimated cost for the project has ballooned. They urged city officials to invest instead in parks, libraries, homelessness solutions and root causes of crime.
“It is unwise to vote to approve this without looking at why this project continues to change and become more expensive at the expense of the taxpayer,” resident Brinda Gurumoorthy said.
Resident Nora Soto decried the state of Dallas’ infrastructure and streets. She said families are displaced because of housing costs, children go hungry and parents lack child care options.
“Our most vulnerable community members are fighting just to survive,” Soto said. “Do not expect us to care the police officers have to train in a stinky facility.”
Two people spoke in favor, including state Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, who applauded the City Council’s choice to put the item on the consent agenda, saying it “sends a signal” to Dallas, Texas and the law enforcement community that officials want the best facility possible.
West has had a major role in the police academy project. He met with city officials in Austin to course-correct after Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said he would withhold $5 million for the academy after not being informed of the changes unveiled by The News.
The funding was later added to the budget sent to Gov. Greg Abbott.
“There will be other auxiliary services or auxiliary programs that we’ll be able to put at that university to make certain that our law enforcement community gets the best training and education possible,” the state senator told council members Wednesday.
Jaime Castro, president of the Dallas Police Association, told The News a lot of work was put into making the academy a realization. He said the association does have concerns about funding for the project, but he looks forward to working with stakeholders on the UNTD facility and public safety complex.
“We want to make sure that the city moves forward having the funds to build both locations simultaneously,” Castro said, “to ensure that the entire needs of the basic academy are met in a timely manner.”