Montville — Under a state law requiring police employees’ employment to get annual approval after age 65, longtime Montville police Lt. Leonard Bunnell is expected to get another year on the job.

The 40-year department veteran and highest-ranking Montville officer turned 65 in September.

The state statute, part of the 1987 Connecticut Municipal Employees Retirement Act, defines 65 as the age of retirement for police officers and firefighters employed by towns, unless the officer gets annual approval from the local legislative body.

The Town Council already approved a first one-year extension last September, when Bunnell turned 65. According to the statute, the Council can vote to extend his employment by one year three times after an employee turns 65.

Bunnell said he’s ready to keep going after he turns 66 next month.

“I’m feeling good,” he said. “I don’t have any problems that would prevent me from doing the job.”

The Council already has voted to extend one other Montville officer’s employment with the town this year. Sgt. Dennis Mathers turned 65 this spring, and the Town Council voted to extend his employment for a year.

Aside from Mathers and Bunnell, Montville Town Council President and former mayor Joseph Jaskiewicz said he is unaware of officers or firefighters in Montville or other towns who have wanted to extend their employment with their department past the age of 65.

Retired Stonington Police Lt. Raymond Curioso was approved for an extension after he turned 65 without immediate plans to retire in 2011, but decided to retire soon afterward and did not seek a second extension.

Bunnell said he expects he will want to continue working for the department even if he receives a third extension next year, but the state statute may require him to retire once he turns 68.

If the Town Council approves the extension at its meeting Wednesday, Bunnell will be able to continue working one year from September 23 of this year.

He enters his second year post-retirement age frustrated with the result of the latest failed referendum to form an independent police department in Montville.

The public vote to keep the town in the resident state trooper program left the town’s $6.5 million public safety building underused, Bunnell said. He said he hopes the building will be filled in some way before he leaves the department.

The 17,000-square-foot public safety building was paid for with bonds that voters approved in a 2010 public referendum, and was built with enough space to one day house an independent department.

Voters chose 1,531-949 to keep the department under the jurisdiction of the resident state trooper program at a referendum in March.

“I’d like to see the building used rather than go to waste,” Bunnell said. “There’s 4,000 square feet — the dormant condition is … not a good thing. We need to start making better use of what we’ve built."

m.shanahan@theday.com