As the Dallas Mavericks considers locations to build a new basketball arena, another real estate scouting mission is also at play.
Dallas County officials are exploring the idea of constructing a new jail and justice center, leaving developers likely to pounce on the current site near the gateway to downtown – if or when it ever goes on the market.
County officials have long heard whispers that the Mavericks could be eyeing the Lew Sterrett Justice Center near Commerce Street and Riverfront Boulevard. But the likelihood of the county jail complex actually being a finalist for the NBA team’s big plans are slim – nobody has contacted county leadership about the idea, according to Dallas County Administrator Darryl Martin.
“I heard that. But they haven’t contacted us,” Martin said of the Mavericks’ potential interest in the jail site.
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Mavericks CEO Rick Welts told The Dallas Morning News last month the city had presented the team with several potential sites. He said they are doing a deeper dive to explore the viability of two of those properties but did not disclose the locations.
The Mavericks’ lease in their current home at the American Airlines Center expires in 2031, and Welts previously said the team has a goal of selecting a new arena site by late 2025 or early 2026.
That timeline could make the Lew Sterrett property unfeasible.
Although Martin confirmed the county is exploring potential sites for a new jail, including rebuilding on the current location, he said they are still in the early stages of what could be a 10-year process.
He could not say when the Commissioners Court might vote on the first public steps: Buying land for the new construction and finding funding to pay for it.
“We’re still early in the process,” Martin said. “It’s impossible to even give you any detail on that because it’s just too early.”
Last year the Jail Facilities Advisory Committee recommended the county build a new complex to replace the aging 50-year old jail.
An outside consultant estimated the project could cost $5 billion by 2032, two years before it would open.
County Judge Clay Lewis Jenkins declined to disclose what sites the county might be considering to build a new justice center.
He confirmed that nobody from the Mavericks has approached him about buying the current jail site.
Martin, however, said the door is open.
“If they have the money, talk to me,” Martin said. “And they have the money.”