Owner of orange-and-blue house now looking to sell

The Swamp of Dunwoody is for sale — as is.

The Floridian who painted his home a Gators hue of orange-and-blue in 2005 is throwing in the towel.

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Phil Skinner/pskinner@ajc.com

The ‘Swamp of Dunwoody’ will be put up for sale — as is. Owner Daryl Cook is abandoning a three-year protest against local government.

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Daryl Cook challenged, unsuccessfully, two government agencies that prevented him from subdividing his 1.2-acre house lot.

So he painted the exterior of his 1960s ranch in garish Florida Gators colors after Fulton County officials turned him down. He brought in concrete-alligator lawn ornaments and a live rooster, pigs and chickens to complete the protest.

In 2006, when the newly formed city of Sandy Springs voted him down, Cook sued, claiming he was deprived of property rights. Last week, a Fulton County Superior Court judge ruled for the city.

Cook, a civil engineer, says he’s had enough.

He plans to sell the Swamp, which is now a rental. “I’m tired and I’m done,” Cook said. “I hope everyone will either forgive me, or at least had a good laugh about it.”

Because the house is a likely tear-down, he won’t put any more money into it: No neutral beige paint for the million-dollar neighborhood. But the “Swamp of Dunwoody” sign soon will be replaced with something more appropriate.

“I’m going to put up a normal sign that says, This property is for sale.”