Tuesday, October 31, is Halloween, a day that brings elaborate disguises, trick-or-treating, candy, spooky stories, horror movies — and in Chapel Hill, lots of costumed revelers heading downtown to celebrate on Franklin Street.

“This is my favorite time of year, and we have been busy planning,” says Chapel Hill police chief Celisa Lehew.

Officials are expecting a big turnout this year, for the first time since before the pandemic. Heavy rain last year kept many partygoers indoors; this year, forecasters say the temperature will be in the 40s but precipitation shouldn’t be an issue.

Halloween has been a Chapel Hill tradition for decades, with tens of thousands of residents descending on Franklin Street every year. The annual crowd grew so large, in fact, that it began causing safety concerns. About 15 years ago, town officials started to crack down on the celebration — diverting buses, blocking off parking spaces, and putting out “Homegrown Halloween” messaging urging residents to come downtown only if they were close enough to walk.

But more recent Halloweens saw more manageable crowds, even before the pandemic — so officials have dialed back on the “Homegrown” messaging, instead just urging everyone to plan ahead and be safe.

“It’s (still) going to be difficult to move around downtown,” Chief Lehew says. “If you’re in a parking area, you will be able to exit, but outside of that, (the streets) will be closed to traffic…(so) if you want to visit downtown, walk, bike, (or) ride the bus, and come down that way.”

Officials have also gradually shifted the time of road closures, so that they happen earlier in the evening. This year, police will close Franklin Street from 8:00-9:30 p.m. between Raleigh Street and Church Street. Columbia Street will be closed during the same time, between Cameron and Rosemary.

Click here for more guidelines on celebrating Halloween on Franklin Street, from the Town of Chapel Hill.

Chief Lehew says police will be monitoring the area to keep everyone safe. With that in mind, open alcohol containers will be prohibited inside the closed area, along with drones and weapons — or any items that look like weapons or could be used as weapons.

“This is a family event,” Chief Lehew says, “so we want people to have fun, but we want people to do it safely.”

Even within those limits, though, there’s lots of room for creativity, as partygoers look out for the most creative, most timely, most elaborate, and most fun Halloween costumes of the year. Franklin Street rarely disappoints on that front — and with the rain expected to be out of the area by 8:00 p.m., this year’s not likely to be any exception.

Featured photo: a typical pre-pandemic Franklin Street Halloween in 2014, with about 32,000 revelers lining the streets.

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