The Bob Bolen Public Safety Complex in Fort Worth, an impressive facility spanning 570,000 square feet and approximately 80 acres, stands as a testament to the city's dedication to its fire and police departments, according to a piece by City News. Situated at 505 W. Felix St., the complex occupies the historical site of the Quartermaster Depot, a critical World War II supply center, and now serves as a combined headquarters and training academy after the City of Fort Worth repurposed the location in 2011, officially opening the complex in September 2015.
With extensive renovations, the depot's old warehouses became indoor training spaces including a hazardous material simulation area and an indoor tactical training village, the latter simulating city streets with a school, bank, residential structure, gas station, and other buildings the complex also houses a high-rise fire training structure, dive facility, survival training chamber, and collapsed parking garage for rescue training, alongside an emergency vehicle driving course, indoor firing ranges, administrative offices and fitness areas, as well as over 40 acres of outdoor training space. In contrast, the previous facility at 1000 Calvert St. now hosts the Fort Worth Police Investigative & Support Command offices.
As a Navy veteran and community-minded entrepreneur, Bolen's impact stretched from his military service on the USS Iowa during World War II to his tenure in municipal government, where he championed the transformation of downtown areas and served at the helm of organizations such as the Texas Municipal League and the National League of Cities; following his death on January 6, 2014, at the age of 87, the city continues to remember the strides he made for Fort Worth.
The complex's transformation from a nondescript federal outpost to a cutting-edge safety training benchmark aligns with Bolen's vision for the future of Fort Worth, ensuring that his name is not only attached to the building but synonymous with the city's progress and care for its protectors. To delve deeper into the Bob Bolen Public Safety Complex's past, readers can seek historical insights from photos of the original Quartermaster Depot provided by the University of Texas at Arlington Libraries, Special Collections, and recollections of Bolen's life via the Tarrant County Black Historical and Genealogical Society and the Fort Worth History Center, Fort Worth Public Library.
