This Year's Hot Headlines

The 10 big stories that got Dallasites talking in 2015

Editor's note: The top 10 stories of 2015 represent the ups and downs of a year in Dallas. Here's a look back at the 10 most-read CultureMap stories from the past year.

1. How to get every possible discount at the 2015 State Fair of Texas. Before the State Fair of Texas started its 24-day run at Fair Park on September 25, smart fairgoers were on the hunt for any discounts or deals they could find to save a little cash.

2. Drunk driver kills 34-year-old woman in Uptown Dallas. Emily Gabrielle Javadi, a vibrant 34-year-old entrepreneur who'd started her own cake-pop business, was struck by a speeding car and killed on February 10 in Uptown Dallas.

3. Texas billionaire gives $100,000 holiday bonus to every employee. Is Jeffrey Hildebrand the best boss ever? The Houston billionaire who owns Hilcorp, the largest privately held oil company in the United States, gave each of his 1,381 employees a $100,000 holiday bonus.

4. Dallas Morning News buyout eliminates many of paper's most familiar names. Nearly 40 employees of the Dallas Morning News left in a buyout, and those departures included some of the newspaper's longest-running and best-known names.

5. Top Dallas breakfast spot forced to move due to rent hike. The critically acclaimed breakfast spot across from Presbyterian Hospital is relocating to the corner of Preston and Campbell roads in early 2016. A new landlord forced the move.

6. How to handle the crazy worm invasion mobbing North Texas trees. If you follow gardening pages online, you probably saw photos posted by perplexed homeowners showing armies of caterpillars swarming tree trunks across North Texas. Marshall Hinsley was on the case.

7. Dallas restaurant scene gets hit by three unforeseen shut-downs. While Dallas diners enjoyed lots of prosperous restaurant openings this past summer, we also suffered shut-downs. We minimized the pain by wrapping them up in one tear-stained roundup.

8. Dallas boasts trio of smartest private high schools in U.S. — and No. 1 in Texas. According to national rankings that came out in spring 2015, there are some pretty smart kids graduating from Dallas-area private high schools. Business Insider had a roundup of the 50 smartest private high schools in the country, and three in Dallas made the cut.

9. Trouble resurfaces on Cane Rosso Lakewood's beleaguered patio. The sadly troubled patio at Cane Rosso in Lakewood received another drubbing from the unsupervised offspring of East Dallas' finest.

10. Where to eat in Dallas right now: 10 best restaurants for cheap dates. The most sought-after request for restaurant recommendations: Where can I go for a decent meal that doesn't break the bank? We found 10 restaurants for cheap dates that don't seem cheap at all.

We have every deal and discount for the State Fair of Texas.

Photo by Marc Lee

We have every deal and discount for the State Fair of Texas.

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DPD News

Dallas signs off on lease on UNT campus for police training academy

DPD

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The Dallas City Council approved a lease with the University of North Texas Dallas campus for a proposed Dallas Police Training Academy. The lease paves the way for the development of a new Law Enforcement Training Center and Criminal Justice Center on a 20-acre site at UNT-Dallas, part of the City’s efforts to modernize police training and deepen academic partnerships.

The new facility, which was first proposed in 2021, will house the Dallas Police Department’s Basic and In-Service Training Academy, along with a Criminal Justice Center, creating a centralized, state-of-the-art campus for officer development.

Training spaces will include modern classrooms, indoor simulation labs, and areas for defensive tactics instruction.

“This partnership reflects our commitment to preparing officers through modern, state of the art, community-connected training,” said Dominique Artis, Dallas Chief of Public Safety. “The combination of a police academy and Criminal Justice Center at a university campus enhances recruitment, education, and public trust.”

Benefits of the Law Enforcement Training Center and Criminal Justice Center include

Academic Partnership: Collaboration with UNT-Dallas opens doors for research, continuing education, and career pathways for both officers and students alike - creating a pipeline to future cadets and expanding opportunities for local talent
.Modern Training Facilities: The campus will feature simulation environments, flexible classroom space, and the latest instructional technology.
Strategic Location: As the first police training academy in southern Dallas, the project brings long-term public investment to the area.
Dual-Campus Model: This site complements a planned Public Safety Complex elsewhere in Dallas that will serve as a field training location for both DPD and Dallas Fire-Rescue.

According to KERA, the training academy is estimated to cost $185 million, plus $90 million for the public safety complex, for a total of $275 million. There is currently $96.5 million committed including $50 million from the 2024 Bond Program passed by the voters in May 2024, along with state grants, money from the Caruth Fund at Communities Foundation of Texas, and private fundraising commitments. Construction is expected to begin in 2026.

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