DALLAS — Construction has begun on the new Dallas County South Government Center. The center is located at the southern edge of the county off Interstate 20 and South Polk Street.
The building was designed by KAI Enterprises with KAI Design serving as Architect-of-Record. KAI’s in-house MEP engineering group was brought on to assist with master planning the overall site. Construction is set to be complete in December 2020.
The two-story building will merge aging facilities under one roof: Dallas County’s Tax Office, County Constables, Sheriff’s Traffic Division, Dispatch, K-Unit and two justice of the Peace courts will be housed at DCSGC. The former buildings will be replaced with the new development.
The new facility will feature a public walking trail that will be used by the Constables and Sheriff’s Academy for agility training, a weight room for employees, a wellness room and parking for special events next to the detention pond.
Additionally, the development will have a 160-foot talk radio communications tower, a kennel for the K-9 Unit and an evidence storage space for the Sheriff Traffic Division.
As part of the new building, the Sheriff Dispatch area has been designed as am ICC-500 2015 Storm Shelter that can withstand winds up to 200 miles per hour. The dispatch area will serve as a backup for other municipalities in the region.
“We leveraged our storm shelter design experience and worked collaboratively with our structural engineering consultant to bring forth an innovative design,” said Derwin Broughton, AIA, NCARB Principal – Business Development at KAI.
