Fort Worth Draws Closer to New Fire Headquarters

FORT WORTH, Texas -- The city's planned police and fire headquarters and training center on the south side is moving closer to reality.

The City Council is scheduled today to issue a 30-day notice of intent to sell up to $105 million in certificates of obligation, $77 million of which would go to the new public safety complex. The council, which has identified a new center as one of the city's important capital needs, would vote in a month on authorizing the funding.

Some $10 million or more of the center's $97 million cost would come from the sale of the Police Department's main building downtown to Tarrant County, which is being negotiated. Another $10 million is proposed to come from Fort Worth's Crime Control and Prevention District.

The district's board -- Mayor Betsy Price and council members -- are set to vote July 26 on whether to direct money toward the new center. At a meeting several weeks ago, some members expressed support for the idea, with the district expecting a budget surplus for fiscal 2013.

Planning ahead

The center is to be built on the 83-acre site of the old Federal Depot at 501 Felix St., which the city bought last year. It would combine police and fire administration, the police firing range and driving track, firefighter training and storage.

The firing range would open around January 2014, with the rest of the complex to be completed that year, said Randle Harwood, city director of planning and development.

"Some of it might go into 2015," he said.

The city has chosen a firm to design and build the center, which is expected to handle Fort Worth's public safety training for 50 years.

About $13 million of the certificates of obligation would go toward four street projects identified in the city's 2007 review of critical streets and other infrastructure. They include reconstruction of portions of Keller Hicks Road in north Fort Worth, Dirks Road near the Chisholm Trail Parkway in southwest Fort Worth, and East Rosedale Street, as well as design of the planned Chapel Creek bridge in west Fort Worth, said Doug Wiersig, city director of transportation and public works.

The street construction and bridge design should be done over the next 18 to 24 months, Wiersig said.

City deadline

The city staff has been evaluating options for a new police and fire center since 2008. The existing complex on Henderson Street was sold to the Trinity River Vision project last year, and the city used the proceeds to help buy the Federal Depot.

The city continues to lease the Henderson Street property, but it faces a deadline at the end of 2013 to vacate at least the firing range. The police and fire departments use Texas Motor Speedway for driving exercises. The Fire Department uses various outside facilities for training.

Of the benefits of the new complex, police Maj. Paul Henderson said in a statement that it "would result in a higher level of training and education, which translates to more effective and efficient policing, less use of force incidents, and multicultural proficiencies needed in today's modern communities."

Copyright 2012 - Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas

McClatchy-Tribune News Service