By Megan V. Williams
Wilmington, NC – It's out with the old and in with the new as Wilmington Police officially lock the doors on their Red Cross Street Headquarters at 5pm Friday evening, saying goodbye to the department's home for the past 45 years.
All regular desk services will be available at the new facility starting this weekend.
Department spokesperson Lucy Crockett says officers have a lot to look forward to in the new building, from a modern forensic lab, to plenty of parking.
But Crockett notes that some officers who've spent decades in the old building aren't going without a backward glance. "Even though they look forward to what the new building has to offer," she says, "I think there's a certain wistfulness about leaving the old headquarters."
Wilmington originally bought the Red Cross Street police headquarters from the railroad forty-five years ago for two dollars. The historic building is now reportedly in very bad condition and its new owner, Cape Fear Community College, says there are no immediate plans to use the facility.
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click here for a map to the new Wilmington Police Headquarters