Prior to their LED retrofit in 2014, the sign’s steel letters were battered and rusty and had large holes in them. Photos courtesy LED Solutions
The on-site team began by removing all the old faces, as well as the glass neon and transformers inside the letters. Meanwhile, another team at the shop was busy prefabricating retrofit inserts out of aluminum composite material (ACM), to apply the new, blue LED modules. Next, the technicians on the swing stage rebuilt the sign cans with aluminum patches, filler, and resin, then sanded and hand-painted them. Once the LED inserts were ready, they were screwed in, and brand-new, intense blue vinyl faces were affixed to the sign structures.
Additionally, with the transformers removed from inside each letter, LED Solutions installed the power supplies remotely, to help simplify the sign’s maintenance. This involved running the wires inside the building and putting the power supplies in the mechanical room. Thus, if one of the LED power supplies needed to be repaired, all a technician would need to do was go up the elevator and change it.
Of course, one of the main challenges for the team throughout the process was the weather, as the proximity to Lake Ontario meant the wind could unexpectedly pick up. The swing stage also needed to be moved eight times over the course of the project, to provide the proper reach while working on the 19.5-m (64-ft) signs. However, with proper planning and communication with the entire team, LED Solutions was able to complete the retrofit on time and on budget. The final result was four improved signs, which remained true to the Toronto Star’s signature colour.
After the retrofit was finished, the signage stood strong for eight years. During that time, LED Solutions worked on a variety of projects with the Toronto Star’s parent company, Metroland Media Group, but was only called back twice to change power supplies at 1 Yonge St. However, everything changed at the end of 2022, when the company received a different kind of project request from the newspaper.
‘The end of an era’
Last December, LED Solutions answered a call from the Toronto Star, asking if they could conduct a sign removal before the Christmas holidays. After more than five decades in the building, the property had been purchased by Vancouver-based builder Pinnacle, and the newspaper had until the end of the month to move out before the new owner began to remodel. As part of the lease agreement, two of the four signs had to be removed prior to their departure.
Not only was the project on a tight timeline, but the team also had to once again account for the fact the building was on busy Yonge Street. Several precautions needed to be taken to ensure a safe sign removal—including the placement of 24.3 m (80 ft) of overhead scaffolding, which needed to be engineered and permitted to operate much quicker than the previous project.
