Permits filed in July reveal this week might be the last time you’ll get to see its iconic Red and White light shining down on commuters
After nearly a century of advertising, it looks like Coca Cola won’t be ponying up for rent to keep the lights on above 5th and Bryant St. According to San Francisco business owner James Chen, who happens to own and operate a business in the building where the iconic Coke sign calls its home, Coca-Cola authorized the removal of the sign thanks to a permitting and bidding process that happened in July and was approved shortly after.
Embed from Getty ImagesAccording to Chen and several eye-witnesses on the street, scaffolding has been erected around the sign and street parking suspended in key areas around the 5th and Bryant, most likely, as per safety regulations.
Check out a screenshot of the permit filed back in July and a photo of Public Works “No Stopping Sign” put up as trucks rolled in to drop off materials.
Chen writes,
“The Coca-Cola sign at the corner of 5th and Bryant Streets is coming down. Coca-Cola no longer wants to pay the rent for the rooftop, so another iconic San Francisco landmark is coming down. Change is constant, but this is one that I am going to miss.The sign has been there since 1937…This is going to be a big job that will block one or two lanes on Bryant Street by the freeway on ramp.“
The actual dismantling will be carried out by Yesco Signs LLC, an Utah-based sign company with remote offices in the Central Valley. Yesco was recently in the news for fabricating andf installing over 4,000 signs at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
As mentioned, the Coca-Cola sign first switched on its lights sometime around 1937, one year after the completion of the Bay Bridge. With its two-way display, cars coming into and leaving the city were welcomed with its warm glow.
Over the years, the sign saw several restorations, most recently back in 2010 when its lights were shut off for four days for an LED and CFL upgrade to align with the company’s mission to be as environmentally responsible as possible.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt looks like that upgraded only lasted a decade with this recent news.
As for the sign’s ultimate fate, according to BrokeA**Stuart.com,
A representative of the sign’s maker at YESCO Bay Area confirmed that the sign is being removed permanently, when asked what would become of the sign, he said, “Coca-cola’s contract stipulates that it be destroyed after removal.”
But, as for 5th and Bryant, the rooftop will be that much lighter and residents around the building enjoying a little less light pollution.
