As the Chapel Hill Police Department grows, its current headquarters won’t be able to cut it for long.
Chapel Hill’s population has grown by about 21.6 percent in the last decade, and the police force has had to expand to keep up.
This growth has put a strain on department headquarters on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard — something that has led the department to begin seeking a more suitable building and the town is looking at a wide range of options to alleviate the department’s overcrowding.
Chapel Hill Police spokesman Lt. Josh Mecimore said three satellite offices have opened — one each in Southern Village, University Mall and on Sykes Street — to ease congestion at headquarters.
If approval for new headquarters is secured in the future, Mecimore said some satellite offices would be blended back, while some would remain intact.
“It is beneficial to have an office near where officers patrol,” he said.
The satellites are mainly used for community service and educational outreach in the community. Robin Clark, a community service officer at the Southern Village office, said satellite offices allow community information items and services can be better accessed in a satellite office.
“The satellite offices offer direct visibility in the community,” she said.
But Clark said putting distance between officers and headquarters can inhibit dialogue with the rest of their department.
