About the Department
The first ever Police Officer was John M. French beginning in 1893. Officer French was paid for police services for July 4th. The Department was officially formed in 1903 and consisted of 12 officers. The first official Chief of Police was Sam Kellogg who became Chief in 1913. This was the year of the famous Draper strike. In 1914 the department now consisted of 43 officers. The town decided to hire a large amount of officers due to the Draper strike that occurred the year before.
March 12, 1994 - Local officials are negotiating a deal to buy a 2,395 square-foot vacant downtown
commercial condominium building to house a proposed state of the art police station, which is badly
needed in the community.
The Milford Daily News has learned that selectmen have been conduction secret negotiation sessions since
February and are now poised to purchase the 70 Hopedale Street condominium building from owners Peter
Young of Medway and Gale Noble of Milford.
The purchase price being negotiated is believed to be in the area of $100,000.
April 26, 1994 - Town officials last night signed a purchase and sales agreement to buy a 2, 395-square-foot
vacant, downtown commercial condominium building for Hopedale's new police station.
After months of negotiations with the building's owners, selectmen, after a 15-minute executive session last
night with Police Chief Eugene P. Costanza, voted unanimously to approve the purchase subject to town
meeting approval and funding. The total purchase price of the building is $259,000.
May 12, 1994 - Police Chief Eugene P. Costanza looks beyond Hopedale Street from the front lawn of the
Unitarian Church and scans the facade of the vacant commercial condominium building next to Town Hall.
From where he's standing, the buildings fading green paint and neglected shrubs contrast sharply with the
smooth stone and stained glass of the century-old Town Hall.
But Costanza isn't bothered by minor imperfections. After all, with a new paint job, a little landscaping and
only $60,000 in interior renovation work, Costanza hopes to convert the 70 Hopedale Street structure into a
new state-of-the-art police station, which has been sorely needed in this town.
"This is the way I've always pictured Hopedale's police station," he says, staring at the building. "Located in
the center of a small New England town, near the center of municipal government and accessible to
residents."
May 16, 1994 - Annual Town Meeting voters Saturday overwhelmingly supported a bond issue of $319,000 to
buy a downtown condominium building and convert it into a new police station.
The 238 voters attending the 1 1/2 hour session also approved a $7.7 million town operating budget and
supported a proposal to keep the town clerk's office at its current location at Town Hall. The town budget for
fiscal 1995, which begins July 1, includes $4,401,622 for schools.
With town meeting approval secured, the police department could move operations from the Public Safety
Building on Dutcher Street to at the new facility at 70 Hopedale Street within three months.
In a landslide vote of 233 to 4, voters agreed to buy the three-story condominium next to Town Hall and fund
the cost by bonding the purchase over 10 years. The vote followed a videotaped introduction from Police
Chief Eugene Costanza, who was unable to personally attend the meeting because he is on his wedding
trip. A slide presentation was moderated by Lt. James Gardner. The slide show depicted interior shots of the
current and the new facilities. The current police station is in disrepair and a new station has been sorely
needed in this town for the past several years.
July 13, 1994 - A purchase agreement that will clear the way for converting a downtown commercial building
into a new police station was in limbo today after surprised town officials discovered that a state lien has
been placed on the property for non-payment of income taxes.
Hopedale Town Coordinator Chris Gaffney yesterday confirmed reports that a pending $259,000 purchase
and sales agreement cannot be formally executed by selectmen until the lien is lifted and the previous
owners of the vacant Hopedale Street building pay the state an undisclosed amount of income taxes.
September 1, 1994 - Police Chief Eugene P. Costanza said yesterday that the town closed on the sale of a
downtown building proposed for a new police station
"Everything's been taken care of," said Costanza, who is hoping to move police operations into the building
by December or January. "The title has been cleared and the town has closed on the property."
March 1, 1996 - Starting tomorrow, Hopedale police officers will have some long-awaited elbow room.
The police department will begin operating out of its new station on Hopedale Street, next to Town Hall after
everything has been moved from the old station
Police Chief Eugene Costanza said officers have been moving items to the new station throughout the week,
and the last remaining items will be in place at the new station tomorrow.
May 13, 1996 - This town's new police station on Hopedale Street was opened officially Saturday with
speeches by state and local officials and a ribbon cutting ceremony.
The skies, which were gray throughout the ceremony, opened up and poured rain on the festivities just as
they were about to conclude.
Recently elected State Senator Richard T. Moore, (D-Uxbridge), a native of Hopedale, served as master of
ceremonies and opened the program from the podium at the bunting-draped front entrance of the station.
June 20, 2011- The Town Of Hopedale swears in Lt. Mark Giovanella as Chief of Police, Sgt. Donald Martin as Lieutenant, Ofc. Steve Mahan as Sergeant, and Ofc. Ricardo Lima as Sergeant.
February 28, 2020- Curently the Hopedale Police Department has a Staff of 12 Full Time Sworn Police Officers, 4 Full Time Civilian Dispatcher, 4 Reserve/PT Police Officers, and 1 Part Time Dispatcher. In 2019 the Department responded 16984 calls for service. This includes E911 calls, walk in complaints, traffic complaints, business line calls.
We would like to thank Hopedale Historian Dan Malloy for all infomation for this section. As well as the Milford Daily News for the Articles.