New Police Garage Could Push Glenville Toward State Accreditation

After a couple of years of tinkering with lockers, evidence rooms and fences, Glenville’s police force may finally be standing on the brink of state accreditation. The missing puzzle piece? A brand‑new police garage.

On Wednesday the town board gave the green light to more than $600,000 in bids to expand the existing garage and carve out a dedicated space for moving detainees. The plan is to have the construction wrapped up by the second week of December – just in time for the state’s Division of Criminal Justice Services to swing by for the final assessment.

“It’ll really put us right where we need to be,” town supervisor Robert Kirkham said, almost as an after‑thought while shuffling papers. “And again, it’s addressing public safety.” He sounded optimistic, maybe a little relieved, that the deadline won’t slip.

According to a July list from the state agency, Glenville and the neighboring village of Scotia are the only two law‑enforcement agencies in Schenectady County still without accreditation. That makes the garage project feel a bit like a last‑minute study session before a big exam.

Chief Stephen V. Janik, who’s been at the helm since 2016, has been pushing for accreditation for years. “It’s a prestigious thing to get through and get done,” he told reporters. “Being an accredited agency looks good on a business card, so to speak.” He added that it could trim liability, open doors to grant money and help keep good officers on the force.

Getting this far hasn’t been easy. Over the past two years the town built a separate women’s locker room, added extra space for evidence storage, and fenced off the police parking lot to stop break‑ins. Those upgrades were part of a broader plan that stalled for a while because the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York dragged its feet on funding.

The authority finally released $1.5 million in 2024 – a grant that was originally approved back in 2017 – and those dollars will pay for a three‑bay docking facility inside the new garage.

Earlier this summer the board turned down a set of bids because the price tags were too high. This round, however, they accepted proposals from Harold R. Clune, Inc. and AOW Construction LLC, which fit the budget and the timeline.

Besides the transport bays, the design includes office space on the second floor, giving the 26‑officer department room to grow if the town’s needs change. Janik likened the whole process to a game of chess: “You always have to look ahead. It’s like playing chess: you’ve got to know your next two moves.”

So, with the garage set to open its doors in December, Glenville is poised to cross the final hurdle and join its county peers as a fully accredited police agency.