Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

I noticed the other day that Dick Dyer Body Shop on Two Notch (which is also the former location of Dick Dyer Toyota) was for sale. Checking the web site reveals that it is already closed, and that they are referring customers to Caliber Collision on Newland Road.

I guess this is the final end of an era for Dick Dyer on Two Notch. I and my parents bought cars from the dealership, and I had my car in the body shop after taking out Bambi on I-26. I liked when the dealership was here, as I could take my car in and walk home. I can't do that from Blythewood, which has cut way down on my usage of their repair operation.

I noticed this former self-serve car wash coming out of East Pointe Plaza on Garners Ferry the other day. I'm not sure how long it's been vacant as I didn't have time to get out and take a closer look, but I'm guessing a few years. I note that there was a Better Car Wash on Augusta Road, but I don't know if they were related. (And I don't know why they weren't just named Best Car Wash...)

LoopNet says you can have all five bays and the equipment room for 165K.

I have noticed for the past few months that Tire Kings on Two Notch near Fontaine is preparing to move.

Their new location will be 2230 Two Notch Road, which is by the AARO Rental Center. I hope they keep the crown logo sign which is nice.

UPDATE 13 June 2018 -- The move is complete:

UPDATE 29 August 2018 -- The new location:

UPDATE 14 August 2024 -- The original building has been razed as part of the ongoing work on the railroad bridge at Two Notch & Fontaine:

Also adding map icon.

I've had my eye on this old Exxon service station at the corner of North Main & Sunset for several years, mainly because of the tow trucks, as Skibo is a family nickname for several people. I'm not sure when it stopped being an Exxon, but for the last several years at least, it seemed to be a tires only business with no gas. It appears though that its last incarnation was once again a gas station.

UPDATE 21 September 2021 -- The building has been razed:

Also adding map icon.

Well, a number of people have mentioned this place recently, and for that matter going back a good while, but for some reason, I just recently got around to visiting. It's quite a large and interesting property that is currently going to pot. I see from the real estate sign and LoopNet listing that it *is* on the market, but for whatever reason, it doesn't seem to be moving. Maybe $2,000,000 is just too much, though as I said it is a big property.

As nearly as I can tell based on this Facebook page, Hampton closed at some point between December 2013 and February 2014. In fact, we can corroborate with the Internet Wayback Machine, noting that the Hampton web site was up on 24 December 2013 and gone by 22 February 2014. (As an aside, it seems that phonebooks are less and less help for this sort of thing lately. For some reason the current Feb 2017 phonebook still has an active listing for Hampton..)

Read the rest of this entry »

I was not really aware until recently that Sumter Street crossed Elmwood, but Dave's Transmission was on that end of Sumter, and more or less behind the old Jim Moore Cadillac property.

The Free Times says that the property is to become a restaurant, although details were sparse at the time of the article. Just looking at the pictures, it seems to me parking might be an issue.

(Hat tip to commenter Justin)

People kept saying that the Mr. Suds carwash at Clemson & Hardscrabble Roads was closing due to the road widening, and I kept driving up there and saying to myself "What are these guys talking about? The carwash is well behind the Circle-K and shouldn't be affected by the road issues at all. In fact it's open, and there's a car in there now.."

Of course, I was looking at the Mr. Suds associated with Magnolia Pointe, and I finally realized there was another one nearby when commenter Sidney gave clear directions ("kinda across from the Waffle House"). By the time I got there, everything but the fence, some support beams and a few incidentals was gone. Almost as if the lot had been washed clean..

(Hat tips to commenters cheryl, Sidney and probably some others)
Read the rest of this entry »

Commenter Homer sends in these shots of the Meineke across from Seven Oaks Shopping Center. This is right next to the Former NAPA that moved into the shopping center, although when I was doing that one, I somehow managed to take the long shots to completely miss this building except for this one:

and pretty nearly in that case too.

(Hat tip, obviously, to commenter Homer)

UPDATE 23 March 2018 -- Now Minnie's Auto Repair:

I noticed this vacant car refinishing storefront when I was getting pictures of Sandy Run Towing, which is two doors down from here. In fact I believe the intervening building (which has the most character of the three) is also vacant.

You can see a picture with the branding still present on this LoopNet listing.

According to The State, this North Main towing operation caught fire on 24 February 2017:

Columbia fire crews arrived at Sandy Run Towing at 3610 North Main just before midnight. They worked for more than two hours to put out the flames.

There were no injuries, but the building and the cars inside were a complete loss

Man! You've already had a bad day when you car gets towed. Now imagine it getting caramelized on top of that..

From the sign, it appears that they have now relocated.

UPDATE 19 January 2018 -- This building has been razed: