The Niagara County Law Enforcement is getting a new training facility. It will soon call Niagara County Community College home once again.
"The Niagara County Legislature is proud to support law enforcement across the county, and we are very excited that all the funding is now in place to move forward with the new law enforcement academy," Niagara County Legislature Chairman Becky Wydysh said. "Having a state-of-the-art academy on the NCCC campus will provide the very best training for our future law enforcement officials while offering some unique learning opportunities to students in the NCCC criminal justice program."
The academy’s training site was located on the Sanborn campus from 1974 – 2011.
"The new learning environment will translate directly to more opportunities for NCLEA and NCCC criminal justice students and their ability to remain competitive. The students will be better-trained and more prepared because they will be more comfortable with the technology," NCCC President William J. Murabito said.
The more than $4.5 million facility will be operated by the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office and the Niagara Falls Police Department. Plans for the new 15,000 square-foot building call for four classrooms with movable walls, men’s and women’s locker rooms, a reality-based training room, and the use of force simulator.
"I want to thank NCCC and the County Legislature for being partners with the Sheriff’s Office in our vision for a new law enforcement academy. The training requirements for those going into law enforcement are extensive and continue to evolve. Our new Academy will allow us to use state-of-the-art technology to meet these training needs and better prepare future law enforcement officers for their careers," Niagara County Sheriff Michael Filicetti said.
The plan is break ground in the spring of next year and open the next facility in 2024.