The U.S. Green Building Council recently honored Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) for its environmentally aware transformation of the former Monroe Shops streetcar maintenance barn into the DART Police headquarters. The building, almost a century old, is the first publicly owned building listed on the National Register of Historic Places to achieve Leadership and Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Platinum Certification, the organization's highest recognition.

The former train maintenance facility, commonly known as Monroe Shops, was built in 1914 for the Texas Electric Railroad and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006. DART remodeled and rebuilt the structure and transformed it into the police headquarters in March 2011. It now provides approximately 69,000 square feet of workspace for police personnel including three floors of modern offices, meeting rooms, showers, lockers, and an exercise facility.

During the renovation process, DART worked closely with the Texas Historical Commission, Federal Transit Administration, and city officials and staff to ensure environmental compliance and conformance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Preservation.

LEED Platinum is the highest environmental standard a project can earn and certifies that a building uses less energy, water, and natural resources and creates less waste than a conventional building.