The Town of Chapel Hill will be staging more police officers downtown starting next month.

In a release shared Thursday afternoon on the town’s website, the local government said it plans to open a substation of the Chapel Hill Police Department in the former Launch Chapel Hill space at 306 West Franklin Street. The building holds several businesses, including Chimney Indian Kitchen + Bar and Bella Nail Bar, but the Launch space facing West Rosemary Street has been empty since the business accelerator relocated to the Innovate Carolina Junction building.

The substations regular public hours will be 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.

Photo by Brighton McConnell/Chapel Hill Media Group

“I, along with our downtown officers and my colleagues on the Town’s Economic Development team, frequently walk the downtown corridor to talk with business owners, residents, and visitors,” said Chapel Hill Police Chief Celisa Lehew. “This substation arose from those conversations, and it will create another place for that ongoing engagement to take place.”

According to the town, the substation will serve as a gathering place for people to speak with police staff, file a report, or connect to resources. The town says it will house units focusing on downtown safety, including the CARE (Crisis Assistance Response and Engagement) team.

The announcement comes several months after the Chapel Hill Police Department relocated its headquarters from 828 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to 7300 Millhouse Road. The new station is a larger space that features far less degradation than the old location — but is significantly further from downtown.

 

Featured photo by Brighton McConnell/Chapel Hill Media Group.

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