Land cleared for new Durham courthouse

DURHAM -- The massive replacement for Durham County's aging courthouse is one step closer to the start of construction.

The owner of a key parcel in downtown targeted by the county moved the last parts of his family's business off the land Wednesday.

That means the familiar sign for the iconic Scarborough and Hargett funeral home is coming down.

A U-Haul business next door is already gone.

"This was supposed to last, Oh yeah. But I can understand progress. I always say progress sometimes impedes those who have to move away and move on for it to take place where they are. But the journey continues. It continues," offered funeral home owner Skeepie Scarborough.

The county paid Scarborough for the land, but he said it was a figure much lower than he wanted. He's had a number of extensions of a deadline to vacate the property while he moved the main business temporarily to a building on Fayetteville Street.

He has plans for a new location, but construction's delayed by the ongoing economic downturn.

That's one reason the county's eager to get started on what planners call the Justice Center. Continued delays could prove costly, so Scarborough's business must make room fast.

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