When: Thursday, November 13-Sunday, November 16, 2014

Where: 911 Central Avenue, Albany, NY 12206

The eye-catching Westgate Plaza sign is coming down beginning today for refurbishment. It will be refurbished and then remounted in mid-December.

The 65-foot tall sign, which was first installed in 1960, is comprised of two ovals, mounted on flaired steel pylons that were brought to the city on railroad flatbed cars. The sign has become a local icon, beckoning shoppers to the city’s west end.

Ann Moreno, Director of Real Estate at Horizons Management Associates LLC, the property manager for Westgate Plaza, says the sign will be taken down in stages, beginning with the neon today, and then, over the weekend, the two ovals will be removed using a crane. Work will continue through Sunday.

Once disassembled, the pieces will be taken to Saxton Sign Corp in Castleton for refurbishment. In 1960 Judge Neon Sign Company of Albany (now Saxton Sign Corp.) manufactured and erected the Westgate Shopping Center Sign.  As part of the refurbishment, the neon lights will be replaced with more modern, energy-efficient LEDs. The steel will also be reinforced and the catwalk will be replaced.

Moreno says the restored sign will be remounted in mid-December. The company and plaza tenants will celebrate with a lighting ceremony.