New safety headquarters unveiled in Uptown Dallas to boost police presence

CBS News

2 days ago

A new public safety hub is now open in the heart of Uptown Dallas, bringing law enforcement closer to the streets and the community they serve.
Officials said the headquarters could be a game changer in deterring crime and improving response times.
Located on McKinney Avenue, the Uptown Safety HQ was developed through a partnership between Uptown Dallas Inc. and the Dallas Police Department. It's strategically placed in one of the city's busiest areas.
"On any given weekday, as many as 100,000 people pass through our district," said Noelle LeVeaux, the Interim Executive Director of Uptown Dallas Inc. "This safety HQ is a proactive investment in visibility, coordination and public safety, not only for those who live here, but for anyone who interacts with Uptown every day."
Uptown Dallas Inc. already funds additional patrols to assist police during times of increased criminal activity. Now, those patrols, alongside Dallas police and private security from nearby apartment complexes, will share the location as an operations base.
Assistant Dallas Police Chief Mark Villareal said the headquarters will be used for an array of things.
"It's a place where officers can come, relax, do reports, have meetings, and use technology to gather intelligence that makes us much more efficient," he said.
Some Uptown residents said they already feel relatively safe in the neighborhood but welcome the additional security.
"I know the community and there's policemen everywhere," said Lionell McConnell, who lives nearby. "It makes me feel safe when I come down here... go to the Starbucks to do some work or things like that."
While the space is still being outfitted, officials say the facility should be fully operational by July 1. Their long-term vision includes adding a dispatcher and camera system. Businesses would also be able to choose to give police access to their private security cameras.
"It brings us closer to the community, gets us in walking distance to everything," said Chief Daniel Comeaux.
Dallas police report an 8% decrease in response times for Priority One calls over the past month and a 3% decrease in response times for Priority Two calls. With the new headquarters in place, they hope to continue those successes.
"If we continue to do collaborations like this in places like this, I think it will drive down crime even more," said Comeaux.