Carrboro residents push back on proposal to merge police with Chapel Hill

More than 100 Carrboro residents filled a community meeting Thursday to hear Town Manager Patrice Toney lay out a proposal that could consolidate the town's police department with the Chapel Hill Police Department.

Dozens of speakers voiced opposition to the plan, raising concerns about public safety and what a combined department would mean for the town's identity. "This is a purge, not a merge," one resident said. "We're Carrboro, we're different from Chapel Hill," another added.

Toney presented the proposal as a response to budget pressures and rising costs. Under an interlocal agreement between the two towns, the consolidation would unfold over at least five years. She said the changes would not affect emergency response times and would not result in layoffs.

According to Toney, the Carrboro Police Department has 28 officers, who would transition into the Chapel Hill Police Department through a series of phases. A name for the unified department has not been decided. Toney said Carrboro would continue to provide police funding, but argued the merger would ultimately save the town millions of dollars over the long run.

Accountability was a recurring theme among residents, many of whom asked how they would hold officers answerable under a combined force. "The goal would be to have our attorneys work up an interlocal agreement where accountability reporting, response time metrics is always built in," Toney said.

Residents also pressed officials on how the proposal became public. Word of a possible merger circulated on social media earlier this month, before the town council had been briefed. Toney said she was not sure how the information got out ahead of her presentation to the council.

The meeting wrapped up after roughly an hour and a half of questions and concerns, many of them centered on the potential impact to the town's culture. Toney said the town will work to share more information with the public before the proposal goes before the town council on November 10.

At least three town council members attended, along with Carrboro Mayor Barbara Foushee. Speaking with WRAL News afterward, Foushee suggested a more gradual approach. "I've been thinking a lot over the last couple of days, instead of sticking both feet in the water with this merger that obviously is rubbing people the wrong way..maybe we stick one toe in the water, do a step up from the mutual aid agreement," she said.

Foushee said she plans to discuss options with the town council on Nov. 10 and encouraged residents to share their concerns and comments with council members ahead of that meeting.