Foley, A Longtime Resident, Settling In As Tolland's New Town Manager

TOLLAND, CT — Brian Foley has arguably brought the most unique set of credentials to a municipal chief executive's job as any in recent memory.

Think about it. He was a longtime cop, he dabbled in broadcasting and then went back to law enforcement as an administrator. And he was never one to be afraid of the spotlight.

Now he finds himself as the town manager in Tolland — his longtime home.

"When I was a cop, did the possibility of being being a town manager ever opt into my mind?" Foley asked.

The question them became rhetorical.

"I saw an opportunity here to help my hometown," Foley said. "I wanted to start as soon as possible, but it was a competitive process. I'm grateful for the opportunity to be home."

Foley had served as the assistant to the commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection since 2019. He was at the Hartford Police Department from 1994 to 2018. At the HFD, he was the deputy chief, the commander of the HPD Major Crimes Division, commander of the Frog/Hollow/South Green District, commander and investigator for the Internal Affairs Division, a patrol Supervisor, a homicide/major crimes detective, a community service and patrol officer, and the HPD's community outreach adviser.

He also served as a chief investigator for WTIC-TV from 2018 to 2019.

Foley serves on a number of boards and commissions including servicing vice- chairman of the Urban League of Greater Hartford.

Foley holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology/Criminal Justice from Central Connecticut University and is a Senior Management Graduate of the Police Executive Research Forum.

"This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to come home," Foley said.

Now 52, he's been in Tolland in some way, shape or form, since the late 1960s.

"I am deeply and personally committed to our town," he said. "One thing I had not noticed as a resident was how hard the staff worked and how dedicated the staff is to doing things right. The council is the same way. It's going to be a pleasure working with them."

Foley's been at the Hicks Center for about a week.

Said Tolland Town Council Chairman Steve Jones, "After a thorough and deliberate process, the town council has found an excellent candidate to lead Tolland as the next town manager. Brian has the strong qualities we were looking for in the next town manager. We look forward to working with him in the future."

Foley said he sees two immediate challenges for Tolland — higher than usual levels of sodium that have crept into some local wells and economic development. The former is being studied and Foley said he hopes it does not rise to the levels of the combing foundation crisis. Economic development must stop up, he said.

"As a resident, I feel Tolland has fallen behind in that area," Foley said. "But I see it as great potential. We have I-84 and we're close to UConn. We have Route 30 and Route 195."

Route 195 heads from the Tolland Green to the University of Connecticut. That 7-mile stretch is crucial to building Tolland's commercial tax base, he said.

"Ideally, towns need to have a balance of commercial and residential and Tolland is not there," Foley said. "But there is such potential for positive growth. We need a strategic plan that will help is put the pieces of that puzzle together. Route 1950 is vital to that."

Foley said he relishes the chase to work on that puzzle.

"It's a shift from being a cop to being a town manager," he said. "I look back at my time in Hartford. There was such a great relationship between the town and law enforcement and we have that here in Tolland as well. I want to maintain that."