Dallas city staff to float another bond election for UNT Dallas police academy

Dallas city staff will ask the City Council to consider a bond election to help pay for a new police academy at the University of North Texas at Dallas and a separate public safety training complex, city documents show.

Together, the two facilities are intended to replace the department’s aging training operations in Red Bird, but the broader project carries a multimillion-dollar funding gap. City leaders say they hoped to shrink the academy’s gap, at least in part, through private donations.

The documents, released ahead of Wednesday’s City Council meeting, also show city staff recommending the northeast corner of Dallas Executive Airport as the site for the public safety training complex.

The prospect of another bond election could sharpen a broader debate over the city’s capital priorities as officials weigh other costly long-term needs, including the future of the I.M. Pei-designed City Hall and whether the seat of city government should move elsewhere.

It could also raise new questions about the academy project itself. Voters already approved $50 million for it as part of the city’s $1.25 billion bond package in 2024.

In December, based on city emails it reviewed, The Dallas Morning News reported that officials were discussing a potential bond election. Asked for comment at the time, a city spokesperson said the city did not have the capacity to take on more debt in the near term and was not planning a bond package.

For the UNT Dallas academy project, the city says it has $96.5 million in committed funding so far: $50 million from the 2024 bond program, $25 million in state grants and $21.5 million in private committed funds.

The public safety training complex, which would include an emergency vehicle operations course, an outdoor tactical village and a gun range, is estimated to cost $169 million, according to the documents. That total includes $157 million in base project costs, $7.2 million in market contingency and an optional $4.8 million K-9 facility.

The city is recommending redeveloping the northeast corner of Dallas Executive Airport after starting with more than 70 city-owned sites of at least 60 acres and narrowing that list to developable properties, according to the briefing documents.

Staffers then evaluated six finalists on, among other things, their access to major roads, floodplain risk, zoning, utilities, proximity to UNT Dallas and how quickly the site could be made available. The documents show staffers ultimately recommended the northeast corner of Dallas Executive Airport.

The public safety complex has a $148 million funding gap, the documents show.

City staffers believe $81.5 million is needed in fiscal year 2027 to “continue with momentum” for the academy, according to the documents.

It remains unclear whether the City Council will support another bond election. But on Monday, several members of the Public Safety Committee said they hoped construction on the academy would begin sooner rather than later, arguing a clear project timeline and visible progress could help persuade donors to give.

Council member Cara Mendelsohn, who chairs the Public Safety Committee but was absent Monday, has said the city asked for too little when it set aside $50 million for the academy in the 2024 bond election.

Council member Adam Bazaldua, a critic of the city’s plans with UNT Dallas, said he was “adamantly opposed” to asking voters for more money after they had already approved funding for the project in 2024. He also questioned the timing, with the city facing a broader debate over the future of City Hall.

The briefing documents outline targets for City Council approvals in the coming months as the city works to keep the project on schedule.

City staffers plan to brief the City Council in June on a possible November bond election, according to the documents. The city is aiming to break ground on the UNT Dallas academy in September.

Staff writer Devyani Chhetri contributed to this article.

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