It’s a facility that looms large, both in its massive size and impressive persona. But with tenants who protect, serve and save Fort Worth residents day in and day out, it’s no surprise that the Bob Bolen Public Safety Complex stands as big in spirit as it does in square feet.
From dusty warehouses to Fort Worth’s finest
The combined headquarters and training academy for the Fire and Police departments, the 570,000-square-foot campus spans approximately 80 acres at 505 W. Felix St. in south Fort Worth. It sits on the former site of the Quartermaster Depot — a distribution point and supply center for the U.S. Army during World War II that included multiple warehouses. By the end of 1943, it was among the nation’s largest military hubs supplying food, uniforms and gear to U.S. troops.
The City of Fort Worth purchased the tract in 2011 and officially opened the Bob Bolen Public Safety Complex in September 2015, transforming the tract from a nondescript federal storage depot to a state-of-the-art facility that has become a benchmark for public safety training.
Two of the aging warehouses were renovated and repurposed into roughly 500,000 square feet of indoor training space. A 30,000-square-foot area simulates various industrial and hazardous material scenarios — leaking gas, chemicals, smoke and fire. Another 30,000 square feet serves as an indoor tactical training village, simulating an actual city streetscape with a school, bank, residential structure, gas station, office and apartment.
It also includes an eight-story high-rise and a two-story residential fire training building, dive training facility, flashover survival training chamber, simulated collapsed parking garage for urban search and rescue training, emergency vehicle driving course, indoor firing ranges, administrative offices, gym/fitness zone and over 40 acres of outdoor training space.
The cutting-edge complex replaced an outdated and considerably smaller location at 1000 Calvert St., which now houses the Fort Worth Police Investigative & Support Command offices.
A namesake like no other
On March 20, 2015, City Council approved a resolution naming the new facility in memory of Bob Bolen, the longest-serving mayor of Fort Worth at the time. (Betsy Price now lays claim to that distinction.)
Born April 12, 1926, in Chicago, Bolen attended Texas A&M University on the aeronautical engineering track. He left after a year to join the U.S. Navy during World War II, serving as a gunnery officer aboard the USS Iowa. Following his military stint, Bolen returned to A&M and earned a B.S. degree in business administration in 1948.
He moved to Fort Worth in 1952 and briefly lived at the YMCA. He worked for a store for a few years before opening his own toy store, the Westcliff Toy Palace. He later opened a second store, Bolen’s Bikes, and eventually went on to own a chain of Hallmark stores.
After working for several years in the private sector, in 1979 Bolen was elected to represent Fort Worth City Council District 6. In 1982, he was elected mayor, a position he held until 1991.
During Bolen’s tenure, he was instrumental in the redevelopment of downtown Fort Worth, the creation of Alliance Airport and the establishment of the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing’s Western Currency Facility in Fort Worth. He also served as president of the Texas Municipal League in 1987 and the National League of Cities in 1990. It’s fair to say that Fort Worth wouldn’t be the city it is today if it hadn’t been for Bolen.
“Leave it better than you found it”
Following an illustrious career in the public and private sectors, Bolen died on Jan. 6, 2014, at the age of 87. But his love and legacy remain firmly affixed here.
In doing the research for this story, one particular “Bolen-ism” popped up several times.
Simple yet powerful, he routinely offered up these words of wisdom to everyone from friends to fans: “Leave it better than you found it.”
That’s a big legacy to live up to. But in this case for sure, the magnificent building that bears Bob Bolen’s name — built for Fort Worth’s bold and brave — is doing it with flying colors.
Special thanks to Linda Barrett, manager/city archivist at the Fort Worth History Center, for her insight into this story.