Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

I have seen a number of shows at this comedy venue in a decaying old Winn-Dixie building on Decker over they years, and quite enjoyed them. For a while I was on their email list, but that stopped at some point, probably because of an ownership change of which this place has seen several. In particular I recall that the first website for the club became inaccessible some years ago, and you had to note the new site the (then) current owners had set up from the corner sign or something like that. At any rate, it was not a smooth transition. Reviews of the place suggest another ownership change took place sometime in 2024, and the new regime never really found its footing (commenter badger suggests there were reasons for that), with a number of complaints about cancelled shows and charges for food that never made it to tables. It's not entirely clear when the last shows were, but I'm going to guess sometime early in 2025.

Currently the place's web site goes to a very sketchy looking WordPress blog that seems to date to years ago, and the interior seems to be undergoing some sort of demolition.

(Hat tip to commenter anonymous)

I noticed going down Decker the other day that longtime Korean restaurant O-Bok was gone, and a new place called Sura was operating in the building. As far as I can tell, the new place does not have a web site, but you can get the menu on google.

This location of Pelican's was in the old Winn-Dixie plaza at the corner, and was apparently some sort of bank at one time.

I had noticed that it was no longer sporting the Pelian's colors, but hadn't gotten around to checking it out. Apparently this location shares ownership with the Rosewood one, and closed in early May, which is not what I would normally expect, as that is just as the SnoBall season is really starting.

The place as been redone with really odd orange awnings above, and black below to block out the Pelican's branding. It seems, somehow, to also have acquired a new set of windows on the side nearest Decker.

If this plaza has a name, it is not apparent. There have been a number of fairly high-profile stores in there over the years including Winn-Dixie, and Lionel Playworld, but none recently and the main building, which now houses a plasma center and a comedy club, is pretty beat up and decrepit on the Trenholm end.

Perhaps the current owners have given up on bringing the place back up as I noticed a For Sale sign on the property last month. Of course that doesn't mean much as I think Midlands Shopping Center has been on the block for years with no takers.

I always thought Badcock had a Smucker's kind of thing going on: With a name like that, it had to be good.

I first became aware of the chain in Fernandina growing up, but I never got around to going into the store on my trips up and down Centre Street. Likewise, I don't believe I ever stepped into one anywhere else either.

Commenter Andrew sends this article which says that the chain was purchased seven months ago by Conn's Home Plus which promptly went bankrupt taking Badcock with it. Seems like some poor decision-making on both sides of that sale!

This store is in Fashion Place on Decker, a venue which has seen its share of closings over they years to the point that I would say Badcock was the last anchor type store in the place. We will have to see what follows.

I can't really say anthing about this Decker Boulevard barber shop, but commenter Sidney says it had been there for quite a while, and it's always a shame when an oldstyle barber closes.

(Hat tip to commenter Sidney)

There is some confusion on the street address of this former Taco Bell on Decker. It was apparently previously listed as 2632 (and I have pictures with that address posted in the window), but is now 2652.

Charlie's Wings was the follow-on in this spot to Feel Goods. I'm not exactly sure when they closed. The last post on their Facebook page is from 2019, but they have Yelp reviews into 2021, so I'm going to put that in the post title.

The reason that I noticed Charlie's was gone is that a new operation is now open in the space, a "Korean style Chicken" restaurant: 92 Chicken.

I noticed that this beauty supply store in one of the many small strip malls on Decker last month was posting a closing sign. I don't know anything about it, but the building is one of those designs you don't see anymore.

El Salto was the follow-on operation in this location to Dino's. I ate there once earlier this year, and thought it was pretty good, though I didn't put it on regular rotation.

I was driving down Decker the other day and noticed that the main sign was blank and that the place had been re-branded -- I'm not sure if it's a completely new ownership and staff or just a name change. Looking at Google reviews, it appears to have happened a month or two ago.

I believe there is another El Salto on Columbia Northeast Drive in the Big Lots side plaza -- I have not checked to see if that is still there.

This Walgreens was perhaps the least Wallgreens-looking store in the Columbia area, having been an Eckerd and then a Rite Aid until 2018. I had been in there a few times in each incarnation and it was fine, but it wasn't one of my go-to drugstores.

Commenter Andrew speculates that the issue here was the lack of a drive-through, but it's a corner spot, so I think they could have put one in somehow (though I did not think to look at the side area of the store). At any rate, the issue wasn't Walgreens oversaturation -- I believe the nearest one to here is either at Spring Valley Commons, or on Forest Drive, neither of which is particularly close.

(Hat tip to Mr. Guy)