Dallas County Detention Center

McCarthy constructed this four-story, medium security facility with capacity for 2,376 inmates. The concrete frame, dormitory-style jail connects to the existing Lew Sterrett detention center and serves as a replacement to two older facilities that were retired.

The facility was constructed according to regulations set forth by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards, and includes special materials and security features such as heavy duty electronic doors that can be remotely secured.

Comprised of a concrete frame with brick exterior, the Dallas County Detention Center required 40,000 cubic yards of total concrete, with more than 18,000 cubic yards of that below grade in the piers. With its location adjacent to the Trinity River basin and above a decades-old landfill, the South Tower’s construction required drilling 285 cased piers to unusual depths, some reaching 160 feet underground.