DALLAS (WBAP/KLIF News) – The City of Dallas is about to start a long-awaited, multi-million dollar overhaul of Dallas police station lobbies in order to better protect on-duty officers.
Erik Thompson is with the City of Dallas and told WFAA TV the upgrades are a response to a deadly incident when a man fired shots at Dallas Police Department Headquarters two years ago this month.
The gunman, armed with bombs, was driving an armored van during the attack. He was eventually killed by a member of the SWAT team.
“We’ve had real life events happen. So, to the extent possible we want to avoid future events like that,” he said.
Former Secret Service Agent Locke Neely told WFAA TV the upgrades are long overdue.
“Every day they go out and put themselves in harm’s way. Let’s not put them in harms way in a building in which they operate,” he said.
The lobbies will be reconfigured to where officers at the station’s entrance are behind bullet-proof glass, rather than out in the open as they are now.
The State Fraternal Order of Police President Steve Stribley told WFAA TV because of the way many patrol stations are set up now, the proposed upgrades still aren’t enough.
“A lot of officers, we work deep nights or the night shift. When you’re getting off and it is late at night, I don’t know how you’re going to be able to see anybody especially if they’re in dark clothes. It’s a horrible situation,” he said.
It will cost the city $2 million to upgrade headquarters and about $1 million for the other patrol stations.
The project is expected to be completed later this year.