Chapel Hill Plans to Increase Business Capacity Downtown by Closing Section of Franklin Street Posted Jun 13, 2020 Plans to section off part of the road along Franklin Street are progressing, as Chapel Hill looks for ways to help businesses and allows patrons more space while walking downtown. A petition from Chapel Hill community members last month garnered more than 1,000 signatures to create more space for pedestrians to safely walk and distance themselves. (Chapelboro.com)