At the Garland town board meeting Monday night, Mayor Pro Tem Ralph Smith Jr. provided some brief updates about the town’s long-awaited DMV facility, including when citizens can anticipate the office’s opening.
Garland citizens have anticipated the opening off a new DMV office since it was first announced back in August. Now, the long wait might soon be over after Mayor Pro Tem Smith Jr. announced that if everything goes according to plan, the office could be up and running in the town by this time next month. According to Mayor Austin Brown, the building has been finished with inspections and renovations complete.
“It is finished and final inspections were done today,” said Mayor Brown.
“I think it could be finished in a month or so,” added Mayor Pro Tem Smith.
According to Smith, this is a rough estimate of the time schedule and while it is getting close to the date on which the facility could open, there are still some minor things that need to be done first.
“We’ll turn it over to the state when everything’s ready,” he explained. “Then, they’re gonna have to come in and run their internet wires and what not through it to get it all hooked up.”
According to Smith, the state has already hired a woman to be the head examiner at the new location in Garland. She has been with the state DMV for 20 years, he shared.
Smith clarified that the new facility will also be a location at which customers can get a driver’s license and not just a license plate.
The facility will be located at the old ABC store on Ingold Avenue. The store was closed in 2016 after longstanding financial issues. The board have also been looking at getting a new ABC store ever since. Earlier this year, the board submitted an application to the state for a new store, but no progress has been made yet.