A major expansion is coming to one of Bonham’s state correctional facilities — and it’s part of a much larger effort unfolding across Texas.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice is planning a new 400-bed dormitory at the Choice Moore Unit, located at 1700 FM 87 west of Bonham.
According to newly filed state construction records, the project will add approximately 50,000 square feet of new correctional housing at an estimated construction cost of $21.5 million. Construction is currently scheduled to begin in October 2026, with completion targeted for March 2028.
But Bonham isn’t getting this expansion by itself.
Choice Moore is one of 13 correctional facilities across Texas selected for a massive new prison-capacity program that will ultimately add thousands of beds to the state’s correctional system.
Texas is adding 5,600 new prison beds
In 2025, Texas lawmakers approved $301 million to construct 14 expansion dormitories for TDCJ.
Then, in August, the Texas Board of Criminal Justice formally approved the individual construction projects.
The plan calls for 14 new air-conditioned dormitory buildings across 13 correctional facilities, with each building designed to house approximately 400 inmates. Lopez State Jail near Edinburg will receive two dormitories, while the other selected facilities — including Choice Moore — will receive one each.
Once complete, the program will add 5,600 air-conditioned beds statewide.
And these aren’t traditional cellblocks.
What will the new Bonham dorm look like?
During the Texas Board of Criminal Justice meeting, officials described the expansion buildings as open-concept dormitories rather than conventional cellblock housing.
Each building will contain three or four separate pods with bunks and attached recreation areas. TDCJ explained that cellblocks generally provide more restricted movement and are typically used for inmates requiring higher custody levels.
That fits with the existing population at Choice Moore.
The Bonham facility currently houses male inmates classified at G1 and G2 custody levels and has an official capacity of 1,224.
The expansion will also require connections to existing utilities, new security fencing and site improvements necessary to bring the building inside the facility’s secure perimeter.
Why did Texas choose Choice Moore?
The location of these new dormitories wasn’t random.
Years before construction filings appeared, TDCJ was already planning how to accommodate projected growth in Texas’ incarcerated population.
In its FY 2026-27 capital budget request, the agency said expansion dormitories would be placed at existing facilities in areas with strong labor pools. TDCJ estimated the buildings would each accommodate about 400 inmates while allowing the state to expand capacity without constructing entirely new prison complexes.
The final program ultimately grew to 14 buildings, and TDCJ said the selected 13 units are well staffed.
Choice Moore currently employs 245 people, including 173 security employees, according to TDCJ.
That existing workforce and infrastructure help explain why Bonham made the list.
Choice Moore has operated in Bonham since 1995
The expansion will add a substantial new piece to a facility that has operated in Fannin County for more than three decades.
Choice Moore opened in May 1995 and sits approximately three miles west of Bonham.
It also isn’t alone.
The prison shares approximately 697 acres with the neighboring Buster Cole State Jail, forming the Cole-Moore correctional complex.
Together, the two facilities have historically carried a combined rated capacity of 2,124 inmates — 1,224 at Moore and 900 at Cole.
The operations are connected in other ways as well.
Moore and Cole cooperate on agricultural programs that include farming and grazing, security horses, canines and a unit garden. Choice Moore also provides laundry services for the neighboring Cole facility.
Adding another 400 beds at Moore therefore represents a sizable expansion of an already significant state presence in Bonham.
Compared with Moore’s current 1,224-person capacity, the new dorm alone represents additional housing equal to roughly one-third of the existing facility’s capacity.
However, TDCJ has not yet updated Moore’s official capacity to include the future dorm, so it would be premature to simply label the facility a 1,624-bed prison.
The full project budget is higher than $21.5 million
There’s also an important difference between two numbers associated with the project.
The new TDLR filing estimates $21.5 million in construction costs for the 50,000-square-foot Bonham dorm.
However, when the Texas Board of Criminal Justice approved the expansion, it assigned the Choice Moore project a broader program cost of $27.895 million.
In other words, the $21.5 million figure represents the construction amount currently reported through the state’s accessibility filing, while the TDCJ program budget accounts for a larger overall investment.
When will the Choice Moore expansion be finished?
The current construction filing calls for work to begin October 1, 2026, with completion scheduled for March 31, 2028. HDR Inc. is listed as the project’s design firm.
As always, those dates represent the current construction schedule and can change as the project moves forward.
What is already clear is that this isn’t an isolated Bonham construction project.
It’s one piece of a $301 million statewide expansion designed to add 5,600 air-conditioned prison beds at existing Texas correctional facilities.
Bottom line — Texas is preparing to add a new 50,000-square-foot, 400-bed dormitory at Bonham’s Choice Moore Unit. The expansion represents nearly $28 million in overall program investment and puts Bonham directly inside one of the state’s largest current correctional-capacity expansions.