Rodney Monroe woke up on the morning of his 51st birthday as Richmond's police chief.

Then yesterday afternoon, Charlotte, N.C., City Manager Curt Walton placed a call to Monroe and made him an offer. Monroe didn't refuse.

By dinnertime, Richmond's chief was the top cop in Charlotte -- the nation's 20th largest city. He starts no later than June 16 and will make $185,000 annually, about $20,000 more than he was being paid in Richmond.

Not that the decision was easy for the chief, whose 40month tenure in Richmond marked record drops in homicides and crime and garnered him widespread praise from a grateful city and its elected officials.

"It's gotta be the toughest decision I've ever made in my life," he said in an interview. "It's just so many different factors that have gone into this -- too many to articulate. But it's been a very emotional one for me both professionally and personally."

The appointment marks the end of an exhaustive, five-month international search for a chief to replace retiring Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Darrel W. Stephens, who leaves the post June 1. Monroe will be introduced formally Monday in Charlotte.

"Rodney Monroe personifies every aspect of the ideal police chief, especially as a strong communicator," Walton said in a statement. "He also has an extraordinary passion for law enforcement and prevention that makes a community a better place to live."

In the official statement issued by Charlotte, Monroe is quoted as saying:

"The chance to be the next chief of police of Charlotte-Mecklenburg is one of a lifetime. I have admired all that Charlotte has accomplished and respected [the department] from afar, and now I have the opportunity to take a great organization to the next level, creating an even safer community."

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Department has 1,638 sworn members and 468 civilian employees. The chief will be responsible for a budget of more than $174 million -- $100 million more than what is spent on Richmond's 750-officer force.

Charlotte, with a population of 650,000, had 74 homicides last year. While it has enjoyed a relatively low crime rate in past years, it recently has experienced a surge in property offenses trending toward violence that has unsettled some of the city's more comfortable neighborhoods.

Monroe's departure also comes at a critical time in Richmond, as the City Council debates its budget and candidates wishing to run for mayor face a June 10 deadline for filing election petitions.

Mayor L. Douglas Wilder -- who hired Monroe in February 2005, lavished the department with more resources and staffing and made its success the cornerstone of his reform of city government -- has yet to say whether he will seek a second term. Wilder yesterday said only that he had been informed by Monroe and that he would have more comment today.

City Council President William J. Pantele, another prospective mayoral candidate, praised Monroe and said he would be missed.

"I thank Rodney for the tremendous job that he did for us and want to reiterate our gratitude. He's been both a terrific professional as well as a good friend. With a mixture of disappointment, we have to congratulate him and wish him well."

City Councilwoman Kathy C. Graziano called Monroe "a positive force for the city" and said Richmond was "lucky to have him for as long as we did."

Added City Councilwoman Delores L. McQuinn: "We have lost a good chief, a people's chief."

Monroe was received warmly Tuesday night at a forum in Charlotte with two others who were finalists for the job -- Alan Dreher, assistant police chief in Atlanta; and Jerry Sennett, a Charlotte deputy chief.

Shortly after Monroe was appointed, he received a call of congratulations from Dreher, a friend of more than 25 years with whom he had worked while rising up the ranks of the Washington police department.

Monroe was police chief in Macon, Ga., starting in 2001, before being hired in Richmond. He installed a community policing strategy here, and the past three years have seen dramatic drops in violent crime and a record 33 percent drop in homicides in 2007 -- a 26-year low.

Charlotte officials said that when they came to Richmond, they consistently found "the highest degree of respect and admiration for Monroe."

Monroe, who will make about $21,000 more than his predecessor in Charlotte, said he felt "proud and honored" to have worked in Richmond.

"I haven't been able to get excited yet," the chief said. "Every time I get excited by the possibility, I'm saddened by leaving. But I am at peace with my decision and looking forward to the challenge.

"Richmond is a wonderful city, and the people of Richmond . . . they know I love them and care deeply for them," Monroe continued. "I love Richmond dearly, and I love Doug Wilder dearly."

Contact Jim Nolan at (804) 649-6061 or jnolan@timesdispatch.com.

Staff writer Will Jones contributed to this report.