Historic Grain Belt Beer sign ready to light up Minneapolis riverfront

One of Minneapolis' most recognizable signs, Grain Belt's emblem on the Mississippi River, is just about ready to light up the night.

The prominent 1940s-era bottle cap sign alongside the Hennepin Avenue bridge is slated to be relit sometime this summer, pending approvals early next month from the city's Heritage Preservation Commission. That's according to a spokeswoman for August Schell Brewing Co., which owns the landmark.

The sign has been dark almost as long as it's been lit over its history. Once lit, the letters will blink on incrementally to spell G-R-A-I-N B-E-L-T, followed by "BEER."

"It will stand out," said Patrick Lawrance of SML Electrical, which is overseeing the rehab. "It's going to be something at nighttime when it's on."

Nonfunctioning neon has been the primary reason the sign hasn't worked. So neon will be swapped out for LED lights, which are more reliable and energy efficient. Other notable riverfront signs have had similar retrofits in recent years, including the Pillsbury and North Star Blankets signs.

As an added bonus, the rehab means the Grain Belt sign will be able to change color for holidays and special occasions, akin to the changing colors of the Interstate 35W and Lowry Avenue bridges.

"There's been a lot of people inquiring about it," said Leigh Wendinger, marketing manager for Schell's. "It's really exciting for us, too, because this is a project that we've been working on for many, many years, trying to buy the sign and then figuring out how to get it relit. So it's all coming together and we're very, very thrilled."

Wendinger said the lights will turn off after a set time each night.

"We don't want to interrupt anybody's sleeping," the spokeswoman said.

The sign originally loomed over the Marigold Ballroom at 13th Street and Nicollet Mall, now the Hyatt Regency Hotel. It was moved to its present spot in 1950. Many shared fond memories of its glowing history when it was relit in 1989 — though it wasn't long before it went dark again.

"When you were a kid, that was something you always wanted to do was come down here and look at the sign at night," one spectator, Walt Lyndsley, said at the time.

The sign has attracted urban explorers and graffiti in recent years. As a result, the rehab will also involve installing a 15-foot-tall fence and removing several trees people had used to climb up to the sign.