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GREENSBORO — After months of pining for more space, UNCG police are finally moving into a new substation at 1409 W. Lee St., the former location of Two Men and a Truck.

Officers were the movers last week as they moved desks, computers and files into the new space. Capt. Paul Lester said the move puts officers closer to campus and in a better position to combat crime off school grounds than their old location at 421 Eugene Court.

“We hope that it’s more convenient to the students and that we can actually be a bigger asset to the university,” Lester said.

The lease on the previous substation on Eugene Court runs out at month’s end.

UNCG purchased the new property through the Capital Facilities Foundation Inc., which was created to acquire buildings for university use.

The fact that the lease was expiring and the foundation had enough money to purchase the building was a “coincidental benefit,” said Mike Byers, the associate vice chancellor who handles property acquisition and leasing.

The building was not specifically bought for the police department; Byers said the foundation is leasing the substation to the police for $1,667 per month.

“What we really need is one central police facility, and we hope to get that in the planning in the coming years,” Byers said.

The police administrative office is at 1605 Spring Garden St., and the emergency management and student safety patrol office is at 996 Spring Garden St. Now, the Criminal Investigations Unit is on West Lee Street.

“Sometimes it’s very challenging to have the department split up into three facilities like we are,” Lester said. “But we just don’t have adequate space to house everybody in one place.”

Lester said the new substation, about 4,000 square feet, is probably twice the size of the Eugene Court space that housed him, four officers and all of their equipment for three years.

Now eight staff members can work together comfortably. The new space has carpeted detective offices and an interview room painted in bluish-gray and navy. Other amenities include a kitchen, warehouse space and ample parking.

The proximity to campus, however, is more important than the perks.

“It makes it real convenient for us to be able to respond to things that occur on campus and to have a base of operation so much closer than what we were working out of before,” Lester said.

Through a mutual aid agreement with the city of Greensboro, UNCG officers can also police the northern Glenwood area. They have the authority to take action outside campus property if a crime occurs in their presence and requires immediate attention.

The move is already yielding benefits. A UNCG police officer arrested a suspect accused of robbing an 18-year-old woman on West Lee Street on Wednesday.

“Hopefully us being here will make it a little better, if for nothing more than just our presence,” Lester said.

Contact Dioni L. Wise at 373-7090 or dioni.wise@news-record.com