Columbia’s famous-ish polka house comes down. Buy a piece of it and help a good cause
Perhaps the most recognizable house in Columbia — certainly the most recognizable house in the Shandon neighborhood — will be torn down this week, after a years-long battle to do just that.
But you can keep a part of the famous-ish pink polka-dotted house for yourself, and in doing so, contribute to a good cause.
Lee Willm, a local home-builder who owns the pink-spotted duplex at the corner of Rosewood Drive and South Walker Street, is preserving some of the polka dots and selling them to collect donations for the Lexington Medical Center breast cancer program.
“I figured it’d be good for some people who’d like to keep a memento,” said Willm, who purchased the duplex this year with plans to tear it down and build two new homes on the lot. “I’ve had people affected by breast cancer. Pink, the color, was good for (breast cancer awareness).”
He’s cut out about 30 polka dots so far and estimates there could be more than 100 all over the gray-sided house, ranging in size from about 9 inches to 30 inches in diameter.
The Shandon duplex gained local notoriety in 2018 when its previous owner, Allen Rutter, painted the large pink polka dots on the house in protest of city officials, who wouldn’t allow him to demolish the home because of a special zoning overlay that’s meant to preserve the character of the neighborhood.
Rutter, who is also a local home-builder, had planned to do almost exactly what Willm plans to do with the property — tear down the 70-year-old structure and build a single-family home to sell. Rutter argued to the city that the house was in such great disrepair that it would be impractical to rehabilitate it. The city, however, argued that the house was significant to the character of the neighborhood.
Rutter fought a losing battle with the city for three years before Willm agreed to take the property off his hands, under the condition that he would be allowed to demolish the house.
Last month, city officials relented, saying the house was not structurally sound and that it had further deteriorated over the past two years to the point where it should be torn down.
This week, Willm is moving forward with demolition.
He plans to build two single-family homes on the property, possibly starting construction in January.
Before the house comes down, he might cut out a few more of the polka dots to sell, given the high interest he’s already received. He plans to hang a few in his office, too.
You can purchase a polka dot for a minimum donation of $25, while they last. If you’d like to purchase one, contact Willm at lwillm@willmconstruction.com or call (803) 513-1410.
This story was originally published November 17, 2020 at 11:35 AM.
