The Old Guilford County Court House is ready for it’s close up.

At least, the back of it is.

Recently, the scaffolding on the old court house was removed after that part of the restoration project was completed, and many county employees and others going in and out of the building say they’re delighted with the bright new look after the cleaning and restoration, which has taken about a year so far.

Guilford County Manager Marty Lawing said he thought the building’s exterior was looking good.

“It’s not perfect, but it looks much better,” he said.

In 2019, the building at 301 W. Market St. in downtown Greensboro – which is the nexus of Guilford County government – will be a century old. So it will never look brand new.

The exterior cleaning is part of a roughly $3.5 million project to restore the old court house to its former glory and beauty – and it has included structural work as well as the exterior repair and beautification.

Guilford County Facilities Director Dan Durham said the restoration of the building’s exterior should be complete by spring of next year.

Earlier this year former Facilities, Parks and Property Management Director Robert McNiece said the cost of the scaffolding alone for the project came to about $200,000 and he added that other aspects of the job were very expensive as well since the materials needed for historic renovation are often in short supply and costly.

The county commissioners were convinced they needed to launch the extensive restoration project only after pieces of the façade had fallen four stories to the sidewalk below creating a safety hazard.

The project also includes the restoration and renovation of the entrance steps, repair of some of the concrete slabs next to West Market Street and the replacement of 33 doors, including the entrance doors.

The contract for the large undertaking was awarded to Greensboro-based J. Wayne Poole Inc.