For aspiring law enforcement officers, the revival of a local training program is on the horizon.

For the first time since 1997, the Gila Pueblo Campus in Globe plans to open a law enforcement training academy.

Funding the program’s rebirth are Gila County, which approved two economic development grants totaling $13,662; the City of Globe, which approved a $13,662 donation; and Freeport McMoRan, who is providing a $10,000 grant.

Globe Police Chief Dale Walters put the idea in motion in the fall of 2021, when he approached Eastern Arizona College/Gila County Provisional Community College District, to request the academy’s reinstatement at Gila Pueblo due to high turnover in local law enforcement agencies.

“We partnered with the college to get it started,” Walters said during the Globe City Council’s Jan. 9 meeting. The college then hired Lee Kinnard, a former Globe Police Chief, to serve as the academy coordinator.

The thought behind restarting the academy is to train cadets locally, as opposed to sending them out of town, and retain officers in the area.

“A lot of the people we send to other areas to get trained, it’s hard to get them back,” said Gila County Supervisor Tim Humphrey.

One of the challenges, Walters said, was finding a firearms range that would meet Arizona Peace Officer Standards Training (AZ POST) requirements. The Globe Police Department range was evaluated first.

“The requirements they had to fix the range were really not conducive for us to do it, because the range actually sits on U.S. Forest Service property,” Walters said, “and so we had to look at other alternatives.”

That was where the Globe-Miami Gun Club and their shooting range came in; Walters said the club was “gracious enough to want to partner with us and the college.”

Even so, that range required a few improvements to meet AZ POST standards – and the grants will go toward funding them.

“Through negotiation with the county and other entities, we were able to come up with a solution – that we all pitch in and help out,” said Walters.

A letter of support from the college read in part that, since Freeport and BHP have leased the gun club property, “multiple emails and meetings” with both had occurred.

“Both organizations have agreed to support the improvements to the range for the safety of the community and the opportunity to offer a law enforcement academy to Gila County residents,” the letter continued.

During a Jan. 2 Gila County Board of Supervisors meeting, Kinnard said the gun club range improvements were the last hurdle.

“I have all the updated lesson plans,” he said. “We have a lot of the instructors through the Globe Police Department and Gila County Sheriff’s Office. I’ve had other people come forward who are experts in their field, and willing to come in to do the training.”

In addition, the college has made agreements with the Miami Unified School District to use their wrestling room and track for AZ POST-required physical fitness and defensive tactics, and with Central Arizona College to use their driving track, which has been certified by AZ POST.

Kinnard said the list of needed improvements at the Globe-Miami Gun Club range was short: Upgrading the electrical system for night shooting (he added that neighboring residents would be informed that night shooting will take place once the academy starts), adding a four-strand barbed wire fence to keep cattle off the pistol range and building an 8-foot by approximately 200-foot berm to separate the rifle and pistol ranges.

The college has already met another requirement by purchasing a flagpole for a range flag. A quote for the electrical, fencing and earth moving was received from 5D Mining & Construction, of Globe, in the amount of $37,324.

The funding from the county, the city and Freeport is expected to cover that cost. The Board of Supervisors approved the $13,662 in two economic development grants to the gun club; $10,000 in May 2023 and the remaining $3,662 in their Jan. 2 meeting. Both grants were funded through Humphrey’s constituent funds.

The Globe City Council approved a $13,662 donation to Gila County Provisional Community College District on Jan. 9. The law enforcement training academy, according to the college’s letter of support, is tentatively scheduled to begin this summer.