A new free app called Chapel Hill Connect has launched that residents can use to report non-emergencies they see within town limits.

Chapel Hill Police Chief Chris Blue said the app will take some calls out of the Orange County Emergency Services system.

“There are plenty of things that folks need to share with us, because they may see it and we don’t know about it, but they don’t feel like it rises to the level of a 911 call. This is a really cool way for people to get us information about a big pot hole or blocked storm drain and so on,” said Blue.

Blue said that Chapel Hill uses 911 for all public services.

“Many people have moved here from jurisdictions where you do not call 911 for anything unless it is a serious emergency, which means that many things go unreported because people don’t feel comfortable calling 911; and they don’t know where else to turn; and they may or may not feel comfortable just calling the front desk of the police department or the fire department,” Blue said. “So this app will really help with that. What I would say is when in doubt, if something says to you, ‘I need to report this, I need to report it quickly,’ call 911. It’s okay.”

According to Blue, there has been a work order software being tested across several departments called SeeClickFix, and the Chapel Hill Connect app is the public facing portal interfacing with the software.

“You just take a picture and make a couple comments about whatever the issue is, and it’ll immediately go into our work order system,” said Blue.

Residents who submit service requests will be notified when the issue has been acknowledged and closed. Other residents can view, comment on and vote to fix problems submitted by their neighbors.

Additional features of the Chapel Hill Connect app allow residents easy access to the latest town news and events, Chapel Hill Transit schedules, parking information, swimming pool schedules and more.

The mobile app is available now for download on Android and iPhone.

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