The city of Glendale has appointed Colby Brandt as its new police chief after serving four months as interim leader.
Brandt, a 52-year-old veteran of the Glendale Police Department with 28 years of service, plans to focus on traffic safety and ramp up recruitment efforts in Glendale.
“We’re always looking for ways to improve,” Brandt said.
“That’s not just in technology. It’s in everything we do. We’ve got to be very in tune to what our community wants, and that’s going to be an important thing for me — making sure that we continue our community engagement and stay focused on what our community is looking for in a police department.”
Brandt has been a lifelong resident of West Valley, with a brief period living in Glendale as a child. He is a second-generation law enforcement officer, following in his father’s footsteps. His father briefly worked for the Glendale Police Department before spending 32 years with the Phoenix PD.
A graduate of Greenway High School, Brandt joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 1992. However, his dream was always to become a cop.
“I went into the military because I was too young to be a police officer,” Brandt said.
“It was something that I always knew that I wanted to do, and Glendale was the first department that gave me a shot at doing it. When I was tested to be a police officer, it was very competitive. It’s not like it is today, where agencies have a lot of vacancies. When I tested, hundreds of people were showing up.”
Brandt’s resume includes roles as a patrol officer, property crimes detective, auto theft detective, patrol sergeant, neighborhood response squad sergeant, patrol lieutenant, general investigations lieutenant, and gateway patrol commander.
He was also the commander of administrative services, overseeing training, personnel, budget, grants, audits and research functions, according to the city. Brandt has been married for 30 years and has two children, one of whom is in the U.S. Air Force.
Glendale is a city that’s open to trying new things, Brandt said, and has established itself as “one of the most technologically advanced police departments” in the country. He mentioned, as examples, the Real-Time Crime and the Glendale Regional Public Safety Training centers.
Brandt played a critical role in the department’s integration of the Real-Time Crime Center, he said. At that time, there were not many cities it could look toward for guidance, other than Detroit. Now, he said, Glendale is an example for other cities.
“We always have been just an agency that is not afraid to try anything,” Brandt said.
Evolution is essential for the Glendale Police Department because it safeguards an increasingly large and dynamic community. When Brandt first joined the force, State Farm Stadium and Westgate Entertainment District did not exist. Now, the police department protects and serves hundreds of thousands of visitors each year during major events, whether it’s the Super Bowl or a concert.
In response to this growth, the city has created a Westgate-based entertainment squad. This will only increase, he said, with the opening of VAI Resort.
Among the most significant challenges facing the Glendale Police Department is the issue of staffing shortages. When he started as interim chief, the department had 30 vacancies. He is addressing the problem to ensure, as the city grows, there are enough officers to serve the community.
Furthermore, Brandt is focusing on increased traffic safety and enforcement. Anyone who is on roadways in the West Valley, he said, knows that driving behavior is a concern. He is prioritizing increased speed enforcement tools and strengthening the city’s traffic safety.
Alongside his decades of experience, Brandt holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Administration from Ottawa University and a Master of Science degree in Homeland Security from Pennsylvania Western University. He also graduated from the FBI National Academy, the DEA Drug Unit Commanders Academy, and the Arizona POST Leadership Program, the city said.