After months of preparation, the new home for the Guardians of the Hill is nearly ready to be put in action.
The Town of Chapel Hill announced Thursday its new headquarters for the Chapel Hill Police Department at 7300 Millhouse Road will open Monday, Sep. 29. The occasion will mark the end of several years of searching and planning for a new permanent home to move police operations out of the aging 828 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard building. On that first day of operations, according to the town, the 828 MLK Boulevard building — which was constructed for Chapel Hill Police in the early 1980s — will be permanently closed.
“At our new headquarters, we’re thrilled to offer the same services our community members have come to know over the years at our Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. home,” Police Chief Celisa Lehew said in the town’s alert. “Our new location is a vibrant, much more welcoming space, and we’re so excited for our community to visit a facility that better meets their needs.”
An aerial view of the North Chapel Business Center located off Millhouse Road in Chapel Hill. The new Chapel Hill Police Department headquarters are in the building closest to the road. (Photo via Merritt Properties.)
The local government approved the new headquarters’ location and 15-year lease in June 2024, with the department and town quickly getting to work prepping the light industrial space at the business center leased by Merritt Properties. Chapel Hill and police leaders had long sought to upgrade its police facility, with the department both having outgrown the 828 MLK Boulevard facility and the building falling into disrepair. The town government initially explored building a municipal services building on the site — with the discovery of coal ash under the ground creating some hurdles — and relocating police operations to the Parkline building off Fordham Boulevard before the challenges of retrofitting it to hold prisoners and police cars scuttled the option.
While the Chapel Hill Police Department takes up much of the building, there are neighboring businesses continuing to operate in 7300 Millhouse Road. The window screen business Retracting Solutions and Robert Dawson Plumbing & Construction each are registered at the address. Additionally, the Town of Chapel Hill’s Technology Solutions Department and the Office of Emergency Preparedness and Risk Management are part of the government’s leased space.
While Sep. 29 marks the first day of operations at the new headquarters, the police department plans to hold an open house for visitors later in the fall. The town’s newsletter said it is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 13 from 2 to 4 p.m. — and will be an opportunity for community members to explore the space and learn more about what services are offered through the police department.
The Chapel Hill Police Headquarters, both presently at 828 MLK Boulevard and once relocated to Millhouse Road, are be open to the public from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays through Fridays and can be reached by calling 919-968-2760. Anyone experiencing or reporting an emergency is encouraged to call 911.
Featured photo by The Chapel Hill Media Group.
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