Did you ever watch the MTV show, Cribs? We love the idea of taking a look behind the front doors of Columbia’s coolest houses. We asked our loyal readers if they wanted to participate, and we were able to find some pretty cool cribs right here in the Soda City.
So, without further ado, we will take a closer look at the Mouse House.
Inside the first floor of the Mouse House | Photo via COLAtoday Team
The Mouse House is located 2123 Park St. right off Elmwood behind the gas station. It’s the only owner occupied building on the first block of the street in the historic Elmwood Park neighborhood. The other surrounding houses are occupied with law firms.
The live-work property is home to Susan Lenz and Steve Dingman, Soda Citizens who formerly owned and operated a framing business full time. Now Susan lives in her art, literally, at the Mouse House where she can focus her talents on her installations and contemporary embroidery.
A peak of the second floor of the Mouse House | Photo via COLAtoday Team
The house was 1 of Columbia’s first “live and work” properties, before the city zoned for this type of property. It is classified as a Planned Unit Development with the first floor of the house serving as the business and the second floor is home to the 1 bedroom unit + the living space. This also means they pay 2 types of property taxes.
The house was condemned at 1 point before becoming the Mouse House and was set to be bulldozed. However, a group of neighbors helped save the property. The second floor has always had a 1 bedroom apartment + since Susan and Steve have lived there, it has been completely renovated due to a house fire.
When you enter the Mouse House, there are roughly 4 rooms to explore filled with art and over 300 mirrors, from the ceiling to the floor, and everywhere in between. The second floor features a spacious living area, kitchen, 1.5 bathrooms, art studio space, storage closet (with many art installations), and 1 bedroom.
If the pictures aren’t enough for you, Mouse House is an art gallery and limited custom framing shop that is open to the public Monday - Friday from 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. and on Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Go see it for yourself.
Ready to show off your Cola Cribs? Let us know if you have a cool Columbia house that we can show off to Soda City.
