North Texas Daily

The Denton Police Department held a grand opening Monday for its new police substation, a facility meant to house administrative and operational services and allow for faster response times on the south side of Denton.

The 24,000-square-foot facility is adjacent to Denton Fire Station 7 and will also contain traffic enforcement, criminal investigations and other policing services. The substation, firing range and Denton Police Department Headquarters Renovation were part of Proposition B of the 2019 bond Program, which allocated nearly $62 million to improve the police department’s facilities.

Chris Watts, a Denton city council member and mayor at the time of the bond’s approval, said the substation “is a great addition” to the south side of Denton.

“Denton is growing tremendously, and the southwestern part of Denton is really experiencing explosive growth with the new developments,” Watts said. “So I think this is an opportunity for the Denton Police Department to be more visible in the community and to provide services that really help people in this area of town.”

The grand opening consisted of speakers, a ribbon cutting and a tour of the substation. The first speaker was Denton City Manager Sara Hensley, who began the event by thanking Denton citizens for voting in favor of the bond.

“This facility was overwhelmingly approved by the community of Denton voters,” Hensley said. “So a big thank you goes to our voters who saw the need to be able to separate out some of our police officers, men and women, to be able to be stationed down here so that we can make sure that we are able to respond in a timely manner.”

Around 65 percent, of those who voted in November 2019 were in favor of the proposition.  Mayor Gerard Hudspeth spoke at the event about the impact the substation will have on the community.

“It is a really critical component to serve this area and also have officers have easy access to I-35 to serve the Rayzor Ranch area and the northern part of the community, as well as the development that’s coming,” Hudspeth said. “So it really helps us serve our community well — we all understand the importance of having a safe community.”

Denton Police Chief Doug Shoemaker closed out the speeches. He started the job in October after Frank Dixon, the previous police chief who oversaw the passing of the bond package, stepped down. Shoemaker said the police officers stationed at the substation will be able to “build relationships” with the citizens in south Denton.

“With the substation now open, this side of Denton can expect to see a quicker response time when people need help the most,” Shoemaker said. “Our south patrol and traffic officers will be here — they are stationed here, as a matter of fact — when they aren’t out responding to calls for service.” 

Police officers then gave tours of the substation to around 50 people attending the event. Denton residents could see different sections of the substations, including patrol operations, offices, conference rooms and the traffic division.

After the tours, the attendees congregated in a common room and were given the opportunity to speak with police officers and city council members. One Denton resident and former police officer, Scott Langford, said he was on the planning committee for a substation back in the ‘90s that fell through.

“There’s been a need for it since then and with the growth, especially down here, it’s about time they built one,” Langford said. “And they did a really good job.”

Robert Munoz, another Denton resident, also attended the event. Munoz, who works as an application architect for the city of Denton, said the substation’s faster response times will benefit people living on this side of the city.

“I think it’s good because it offers more coverage for the city,” Munoz said. “The other half, the north side, there’s always [police officers] over there. [Now there’s a station] on the south side that’s closer for the residents of the south end and closer to the interstate.” 

With the completion of the indoor firing range and the substation, the headquarters renovation is the final part of Proposition B that has yet to be completed. Shoemaker said the goal is to have the renovations completed before the end of the year and that he would love to have citizens attend that opening as well.

Featured Image Denton Chief of Police Doug Shoemaker speaks during the new substation’s ribbon cutting ceremony on April 25, 2023. Hannah Sutherland