A game of Scrabble in the sky has been playing out atop the Pillsbury A-Mill complex along the Mississippi River in Minneapolis.
Pillsbury's Best Flour sign in Minneapolis reinstalled and relit after significant overhaul
October 21, 2015 at 4:41AM
One by one, a crane has been replacing the letters of the recently refurbished "Pillsbury's Best Flour" sign.
Those blinking red neon letters helped light the night sky for more more than 70 years, but by 2014 the letters and the metal structure they hang on were dilapidated, so were taken down and shipped off to Lawrence Sign in St. Paul for a $100,000 restoration.
The former mill complex — one of the most historic buildings in the Midwest — was recently converted into the A-Mill Artist Lofts by Twin Cities-based Dominium.
"This is an exciting milestone for us," said Dominium developer, Owen Metz. "We've done a huge amount of work preserving the iconic landmark and restoring these buildings to their original character. Now we have a chance to restore the skyline of the St. Anthony Main area and the city of Minneapolis."
JIM BUCHTA
![By the end of Tuesday the sign will be complete. Illumination should be restored sometime in November. ] GLEN STUBBE * gstubbe@startribune.com Tuesday, October 20, 2015 The St. Anthony Main strip and A Mill Artists Lofts is getting its Pillsbury mojo back. Work is underway to reinstall the 30-foot tall Pillsbury's Best Flour sign, which sits atop a red tile silo building connected to the Pillsbury Mill. Owen Metz, of Twin Cities-based developer Dominium which is restoring the sign, said removing](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/2QXHE6GNLZDJI6S3JT3LW5SRDI.jpg?&w=712)
![Worker from Lawrence Sign positioned the dot for the letter i. ] GLEN STUBBE * gstubbe@startribune.com Tuesday, October 20, 2015 The St. Anthony Main strip and A Mill Artists Lofts is getting its Pillsbury mojo back. Work is underway to reinstall the 30-foot tall Pillsbury's Best Flour sign, which sits atop a red tile silo building connected to the Pillsbury Mill. Owen Metz, of Twin Cities-based developer Dominium which is restoring the sign, said removing, restoring and replacing the signs with](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/PVRNYBHUQDIENHQXSPW5AOZJJY.jpg?&w=712)
![The letter i is hoisted to the Mill roof. ] GLEN STUBBE * gstubbe@startribune.com Tuesday, October 20, 2015 The St. Anthony Main strip and A Mill Artists Lofts is getting its Pillsbury mojo back. Work is underway to reinstall the 30-foot tall Pillsbury's Best Flour sign, which sits atop a red tile silo building connected to the Pillsbury Mill. Owen Metz, of Twin Cities-based developer Dominium which is restoring the sign, said removing, restoring and replacing the signs with new LED lighting wil](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/CVZY5BQAF4CHTDGAH6X3J2HES4.jpg?&w=712)
![A worker from Lawrence Sign prepped the letter i for hoisting to the Mill roof. ] GLEN STUBBE * gstubbe@startribune.com Tuesday, October 20, 2015 The St. Anthony Main strip and A Mill Artists Lofts is getting its Pillsbury mojo back. Work is underway to reinstall the 30-foot tall Pillsbury's Best Flour sign, which sits atop a red tile silo building connected to the Pillsbury Mill. Owen Metz, of Twin Cities-based developer Dominium which is restoring the sign, said removing, restoring and replaci](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/4GMB4YO6YFOPBWPG6UEDTIE74A.jpg?&w=712)
From small businesses to giants like Target, retailers are benefitting from the $10 billion industry for South Korean pop music, including its revival of physical album sales.
