CLEMMONS, N.C. -- Residents in one neighborhood are relieved after the demolition of a house that cast a shadow over their once quiet street.
On Friday, crews brought down the property at 2749 Knob Hill Drive, which some dubbed the “house of horrors,” as police in October found the bodies of two shooting victims buried in the backyard.
"Finally, we're going to have some peace and calmness,” said Lauren Hurst, a nearby homeowner.
Hurst said Pazuzu Algarad, the man accused of the murders, had caused her and her family discomfort for years and so she was glad to see the home go.
"That eyesore is not there anymore and the memories of everything that's gone on over there,” she explained.
Wells Fargo bought the now-demolished property at auction and plans to donate the plot to the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development. Hurst said she and other neighbors remain unsure about what should replace the house, although she posed a park or Habitat for Humanity house as potential ideas.
Burton Kennedy, a realtor with Keller Williams Realty in Greensboro, says any stigma the home has brought to the neighborhood will likely decrease over time.
"If you look, historically, where there's been a murder in the neighborhood or something tragic like that, the grapevine usually spreads the word, but I think soon that dies down and things get back to normal,” he said.
Kennedy said realtors have no legal obligation to disclose if something tragic has happened in a neighborhood, although they would if a client asks.