Flyer staff photo
FAYETTEVILLE — Signs were recently installed marking Stephen Carr Memorial Boulevard.
The street section of Porter Road between Deane Street and Mount Comfort Road was renamed in December in honor of the fallen police officer, who was killed in 2019 after being shot behind the police station in downtown Fayetteville.
The road runs past the site of the new police headquarters facility that’s currently under construction (see map below).
When the street was renamed, City Council members said the location is fitting, partially because the new headquarters is being built in part to protect officers.
“I think this would be really beneficial to honor officer Carr in a very large way,” said Council Member Holly Hertzberg, who brought forward the proposal. “A lot of people are going to see this. It will be very public.”
Carr was ambushed by a gunman who shot him 10 times in the head while he was sitting in his patrol vehicle in the open parking lot behind the police station. The new facility will include a gated area for patrol vehicles in an effort to keep officers safe during shift changes.
The 82,630-square-foot facility will also include a bronze memorial sculpture of Carr based on a photo that shows the officer comforting an abandoned dog who was left tied to a bench on Dickson Street. Carr later adopted the dog and named it “Red.”
During Carr’s funeral, Police Chief Mike Reynolds promised the officer would forever be remembered in Fayetteville.
“As police chief, I make this vow,” Reynolds said at the time. “Stephen Carr, badge number 413, will not be forgotten.”
Reynolds said on Monday that more signs honoring Carr will eventually be placed along Interstate 49 near the Porter Road exit.
