Iconic polka dot tree is coming down

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — 12 years ago, Joanna Puritz opened her print shop on Wrightsville Avenue. It’s called PrintWorks but it is better known by its nickname, The Polka Dot Printer. When the doors first opened however, polka dots were not part of the plan.

“Our logo was a thumb print,” said owner Joanna Puritz.

But after deciding to spruce up the tree in front of the shop with a fresh coat of paint and some reflective white dots. A brand was born.

“People don’t even know us as PrintWorks. I go ‘Well I own PrintWorks,’ they go ‘Printworks?’ I go ‘Oh you know the Polka Dot Printer,’ they go ‘Oh yeah we know that!'” said Puritz.

Not everyone thought the painted tree was a good idea.

“Someone turned us in to the city because we had polka dotted our tree,” Puritz said.

In what she calls a David and Goliath story, she fought city hall and lost, so she paintedover the polka dots with solid red paint.

“Well red paint fades very quickly so as you can see now the polka dots are coming back through,” said Puritz.

Then at the start of this year, arborists from the city determined the polka dot tree was sick and needed to be taken down to keep folks safe.

“Oh my goodness to look out this window and not see that tree. Yeah. It is truly a landmark for a lot of people not just for PrintWorks but for a lot of people,” Puritz said.

She said with or without the tree that started it all, they will always be the Polka Dot Printer.

The city said they will replace the tree with a new one that is less susceptible to illness and does not break up the sidewalk with its roots. There is no set date yet for removal.