Five things to know about Atlanta’s public safety training center.Years in the making: In April 2021, then-Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announced a plan to build a police training facility.Who is The APF: The Atlanta Police Foundation is the nonprofit involved in the private-public partnership with the city to build the training center.A dark history: During the 20th century, inmates produced food for the region’s prison system on the site of the planned facility.South River Forest: The planned site of the training center is located on 380 acres of Atlanta-owned land in southwestern DeKalb County.Moving Day: Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said he is confident that the department will officially move into the space by the end of 2024

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A member of a metro Atlanta Fire Department and his children place their hands on the casket of fallen DeKalb firefighter Preston Fant during a memorial service for Fant at Truist Park on Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025, in Atlanta. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Credit: Hyosub Shin / Hyosub.Shin@ajc.com

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Julian Conley listens during opening statements in his trial at Fulton County Superior Court in Atlanta on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. The 25-year-old is accused of fatally shooting 8-year-old Secoriea Turner in July 2020. (Abbey Cutrer/AJC)

Credit: abbey.cutrer@ajc.com