FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                        Contact: Harris Weiss
October 24, 2022                                                                                 845-729-1396 (Cell)

Assemblywoman Lupardo & Chief Garey Announce Plans for
Law Enforcement Training Center
$350,000 grant will pay for Virtual Reality Simulator and Range Upgrades

(Endicott, NY) – Local police departments will finally receive a boost to their training capabilities through a major grant awarded by Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo. During a press conference at the Endicott Police Department, Assemblywoman Lupardo announced that she had secured a $350,000 grant for the Endicott Police Law Enforcement Training Center. The project was first initiated in 2019 but was delayed by the pandemic and then supply chain issues. Construction will begin this week.

$150,000 of the grant will be used to purchase a fully immersive 360-degree virtual reality platform to train up to 4 officers at the same time for the most difficult real-world situations. These scenarios include mental health crises, de-escalation efforts, emergency intervention, and active shooters. In addition to training law-enforcement, the system will allow officers to cross-train with Mobile Crisis personnel from the Mental Health Association of the Southern Tier and other similar human service organizations.

The remaining $200,000 will upgrade the existing ballistics range with new bricks along the front and side walls, as well as installing a new bullet trap system. These upgrades will also allow for patrol-rifle training and qualification, which is more realistic. The range is currently rated for handguns only.

The Training Center will be used by the following police departments: Endicott, Johnson City, Vestal, and Port Dickinson, along with the Broome Sheriff’s Office, the Broome County District Attorney, Broome County Security, New York State Police, and Binghamton University Police.

Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo said “I am thrilled that construction on the new Training Center is finally underway. Our local law enforcement will be able to train using the latest virtual reality technology, helping them to be better prepared for the encounters they face. And improvements made to the ballistics range will also allow for more realistic training opportunities.”

Village of Endicott Police Chief Patrick Garey said, “This funding will provide law enforcement the ability to train better and more often and provide opportunities to cross train with partner agencies such as mental health crisis teams and school districts. The Virtual Reality training will really be limited only by the imagination. Thank you, Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo, for your support.”

-30-