DURHAM - Ronnie Sturdivant, a colorful and controversial Durham businessman found shot to death Saturday, was often at odds with lenders and politicians.

A landlord with prime downtown properties, he fought during the past two decades to keep up with his debts and to counter criticism lodged by city leaders.

Police found Sturdivant, 52, dead at one of those properties, a former motel turned store at 605 W. Chapel Hill St., at 4:28 p.m. Saturday. Barry Wayne Kaalund, 59, of 1305 Rosewood St., has been charged with his murder.

Police have a theory of what happened and do not think the shooting was related to an argument or long-standing dispute, said Durham homicide Sgt. Jack Cates, who declined to elaborate, citing the ongoing investigation.

"We're looking at all options," he said. "We're not ruling anything out at this point."

Kaalund is being held without bail at the Durham County jail.

Members of the Sturdivant family declined an interview request but released a statement to the media.

"There are no words that can capture the loss that we have in our hearts," it read. "We ask that your thoughts and prayers be with our family and friends during this most difficult time and hope you will understand our need for privacy."

Sturdivant, a father of three, was a native of Polkton, southeast of Charlotte near the South Carolina border. He rose to local prominence in the early 1990s as he fought to buy the Temporary Quarters Residential Inn, the former name of the West Chapel Hill Street property.

City officials objected to the purchase, fearing that the low-cost motel would attract unsavory clientele. Sturdivant battled back, though, going so far as to put his bed atop the place to gain attention for his struggle. He likened the opposition to "the practice of apartheid."

He bought the property but never shook the criticism. Through the years, the motel, which is surrounded by razor wire and located across from the Durham Police department, fell into disrepair. Sturdivant converted it into a thrift store called the Urban Merchant Center.

Just a few weeks ago, city inspectors returned to investigate abandoned vehicles and junk. Council member Eugene Brown, whose real estate office is across the street, was a frequent critic of its condition and helped prompt the most recent inspection.

"Ronnie was somewhat controversial," Brown said Sunday, "but nobody deserves to die like this. My sympathies go out to his family."

Big ambitions

Hank Scherich, founder of the test-grading company Measurement Inc., got to know Sturdivant more than a decade ago when their sons attended Riverside High School together. In recent months, he had mentored Sturdivant on business matters.

"He hardly needed mentoring," Scherich said. "He was a good businessman himself."

About a year ago, Scherich loaned Sturdivant money so that he could settle debt on a commercial property at 202 N. Corcoran St. in Durham's core. It's known as the "Oprah building" because of large sign that reads "We Want Oprah!!!" Sturdivant had mounted a campaign to lure the talk show host to the Bull City.

Through the years, Sturdivant ran into financial difficulties several times. In 1999, for instance, a bank threatened to sell more than a dozen properties he owned with his wife, Dianne, to pay thousands of dollars on mortgages.

"Near as I can tell, he's always paid his debts, even though sometimes he was behind in his debts and had trouble with them," Scherich said. "He had tried some business ventures that didn't work and had some negative publicity associated with them, but Ronnie was very fair."

And he had big ambitions. He wanted to redevelop the Corcoran property into a signature building for downtown, Scherich said.

"He realized he needed help to do that," Scherich said. "But he wanted to be known for having led that effort and for a black man creating something significant in downtown Durham. I thought that was a noble dream."

(Staff writer Stanley B. Chambers Jr. and staff researcher Brooke Cain contributed to this report.)

Get $150+ in coupons in every Sunday N&O. Click here for convenient home delivery.