Chapel Hill’s Downtown Partnership evidently doesn’t think the town is doing enough to keep downtown clean and safe. The group is proposing “downtown ambassadors” as part of the town’s vision plan.
Downtown must be, and be perceived by citizens, as clean and safe. The Downtown Partnership, as downtown’s managing entity, should hire a private company to contract for clean and safe services. These services must include a team of trained professional ambassadors who patrol downtown 18 hours a day, seven days a week. The Downtown Ambassadors would provide custodial, security ( as an adjunct to the Chapel Hill Police Department ), visitor orientation, and social outreach services as a minimum. The cost is between $330,000 and $350,000 annually. This amount would cover all equipment, uniform, supervisory, payroll, retirement, and administrative costs.