The Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority is finalizing plans to install new marquee signage along the facility’s Broad Street entrance to prominently brand the 2.3 million square foot facility, which attracts more than 1 million annual convention and show attendees. The marquee will expand the Center’s presence on Center City’s Philadelphia’s iconic Broad Street, which is undergoing a major renaissance. The Pennsylvania Convention Center projects that the installation of the new illuminated signage, which will feature the name of the facility in large block lettering, will be completed within the next six months. LED Lighting will allow the Center to change the lighting of the letters during different seasons or in connection with specific events being hosted at the facility.
“While many Philadelphia-area residents are familiar with our building and its location, each year we host dozens of major national conventions and meetings that attract thousands of visitors from other cities,” said Gregory J. Fox, chairman of the Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority. “This new signage will make the building more welcoming and easier to identify for out-of-town conventioneers, exhibitors, and meeting attendees. As the major economic driver of the region’s hospitality industry, it is important that we have the proper branding and signage in place along our Broad Street entrance.”
The lettering is being designed by Vitetta Architects of Eddystone, Pa, the principal architect on the $786 million expansion of the Center which was completed in 2011. The sign will be installed over the three canopies above the Center’s west entrance along North Broad Street. The letters will be blue in the daytime and backlit white at night. The lettering is designed to be installed just below the programmable, 475 LED light wall located on the facility’s Broad Street façade.
“The completion of the sign installation will coincide nicely with the celebration of the Pennsylvania Convention Center’s 25th anniversary in 2018,” said the Center’s President & CEO John J. McNichol. “As visitors to our city travel along Broad Street, our building will be immediately recognizable to meeting and show attendees.” Installation of the new signage will require final approval by the Philadelphia Art Commission and completion of a procurement process for a vendor to install the lettering. The Center projects that the new marquee will cost less than $100,000.
