BY BETH VELLIQUETTE

bvelliquette@heraldsun.com; 918-1042

CHAPEL HILL -- It will be just a short walk, but organizers hope it will go a long way in bringing neighbors together during the Annual Neighborhood Night Out tonight.

The Night Out event, usually held in August to coincide with the National Night Out, will begin at 5:30 this evening at the Hargraves Center on Roberson Street. The walk begins at 6 p.m., followed by a block party with food, music, games and a raffle drawing.

The date was moved from August to September in the hope that UNC students who live in the Northside and Pine Knoll neighborhoods would participate in the event along with the full-time residents, said Deana Carson, director of community programs for Empowerment, one of the sponsoring agencies.

"We're hoping that a variety of folks and people will begin to engage in the community and not just see themselves as [either] students or permanent residents," Carson said. "We want them to take ownership of the neighborhood."

By getting to know their neighbors, whether they are 20-year-old students or 85-year-old retirees, Carson hopes people will understand that they can improve the safety and camaraderie of their neighborhoods.

Carson is expecting about 400 people at the event, compared to about 200 last year.

The date of the event also was changed so it would coincide more closely with the Neighborhood Initiative.

That program is a joint effort by Chapel Hill police and UNC officials to welcome students who live in residential neighborhoods near campus back to town. The students are provided information about the town as well as safety tips, said Lt. Kevin Gunter of the Chapel Hill Police Department.

Night Out also gives people a chance to meet police officers in an informal and friendly setting. Officers on bikes will lead the walk, and it's expected that the chief, deputy chief and other high-ranking officers as well as the officers who work in the neighborhood will attend, Gunter said.

Following the short walk, which begins and ends at the Hargraves Center on North Roberson Street, there will be games for kids and adults, including kickball, dodge ball, a three-legged race and a bounce house.

"The biggest thing is Rameses will be there," Carson said referring to the UNC mascot.

Kelsey's is catering the event, but Jimmy John's sandwich shop is also donating sandwiches for the party.

Carson is hoping a couple of UNC student singing groups will perform, but as of Monday morning she hadn't received confirmation from either group.

A DJ will play music throughout the event.

Registration for the walk begins at 5:30 p.m.