Ajax has unveiled its own version of the 3D light-up sight similar in design to the one in Toronto.
The town hosted an event to reveal the sign, which now sits at Pat Bayly Square, on May 13. The ceremony began with an introduction from Elder Kim Wheatley, an Ojibwe Anishinaabe Grandmother from Shawanaga First Nation Reserve
Mayor Shaun Collier, MPP Patrice Barnes and MP Mark Holland all attended along with Fastsign Managing Director Bhajan Kumaresan.
Fastsigns is an Ajax-based signage manufacturer that built the 40-foot-long, eight-foot-tall signature sign. The sign is funded in part through a grant from the Federal Government’s Tourism Relief Fund, which provided $125,000. The town contributed about $88,000.
Ajax’s sign is inspired by the similar one in Toronto’s Nathan Phillips Square, which was built ahead of the 2015 Pan-Am Games. The sign was meant to be a temporary attraction for the games, but the city decided to keep it afterwards. The temporary sign was replaced with a permanent version in 2020.
Unlike Toronto’s solid letters, the Ajax sign is see-through. It still lights up along the edges and the lights can be synched to music.
The Toronto sign has inspired similar efforts around the country. However, not all have been as successful as Ajax’s. Oshawa set a goal to raise 75 per cent of $500,000 by June 1, 2021 for a sign to celebrate the city’s 100th anniversary. By the time they hit that deadline, they had raised a little over $3,000.
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