Recent plans fell through for the Town of Chapel Hill and UNC to agree on a joint venture that would have brought a new Chapel Hill Police station and other town facilities to a new building on university-owned property on Estes Drive Extension.

Chapel Hill Police assistant chief Jabe Hunter provided an update to the Town Council on Wednesday night.

“Unfortunately, we’ve been unable to come to terms on that land lease, and we’ve not been able to further that option,” Hunter said.

The discussions with UNC began publicly in January 2017.

Municipal Services Center University Place Proposal.

The town manager now has authority to explore the potential for a municipal services center at a new location, University Place, after the town board’s unanimous approval.

Hunter said the space was adequate to house the entire operation that had been planned for the site – including the police station, administrative offices from the town’s fire and parks and rec offices as well as some other town staff.

“There’ll be no need to cut some of the services and move away from the plan as we’ve made it so far,” Hunter said.

The new plans would place the municipal services center in the parking lot adjacent to Willow Drive in the parking lot next to Silverspot Cinema.

“The puzzle pieces may change as the footprint is different, but the entire program will fit,” Hunter said.

Hunter touted the town’s previous experiences with public-private partnerships, including the Hamilton Road Fire Station.

Mayor Pro Tem Jess Anderson praised the new proposal.

“I love this option; I’m so happy you found this option; it’s so much better than our other options that we’ve had,” she said. “So, I’m very supportive of this. I’m also very thankful to the police department for hanging in there; I know that you are not in the most optimal accommodations at the moment.”

Anderson said the project’s central location, not encroaching on other neighborhoods and already being impervious surface were also positives.

Mayor Pam Hemminger also referenced the need to move quickly to replace the current police headquarters, which was previously identified as being inadequate.

“We need to get moving on having a solution for our police department,” she said. “Where they’re operating right now is not sufficient.”

The town manager can now advance negotiations with Ram Realty, which recently bought University Place, to discuss a potential land lease, parking and stormwater management for any potential development.

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