LOVE LETTERS
Iconic Toronto sign gets some TLC and new theme in time for Canada’s 150th birthday celebrations,
“The sign instantly became one of our most recognizable icons. . . . It really does seem to have lasting power.” ANDREW WEIR EXECUTIVE VICE-PRESIDENT TOURISM TORONTO
Toronto’s newest tourism star is getting a facelift after emerging from winter worse for wear.
City staff were busy Friday removing a frayed 17-month-old vinyl wrap from the Toronto sign in Nathan Phillips Square and replacing it with a new one celebrating the city and Canada’s 150th birthday.
The colourful cladding for the big climbable letters features the word “love” in 60 languages.
Also prominent are raccoon faces representing Toronto, maple leaves for Canada and hearts representing love.
While not everyone celebrates raccoons and their foraging habits, the city says in a news release it is “an animal whose abundance across the city has made it synonymous with T.O. life.”
“The theme of the new wrap for the Toronto sign is ‘TO Canada with Love’ which ties in with the city of Toronto’s yearlong program of celebrations, commemorations and exhibitions honouring Canada’s 150th birthday,” the release states.
“The title can be read as T.O. Canada with Love — a nod to one of the city’s most popular nicknames, and a sign-off expressed with endearment from residents to visitors. Or, it can be read as ‘To Canada with Love,’ a more active address from the city to the rest of the country, proudly sharing the city’s cultural offerings with the rest of the nation.”
The Star reported in early April that the sign, photographed and shared by visitors from around the world, was looking shabby, scuffed with wrap unevenly worn away in heavily trod spots to reveal black rubbery padding. The 2015 Pan Am Games spirit booster, kept in the square by popular demand, has no official permanent status, no guidelines for which events merit notice by its multi-hued lights, and no ongoing maintenance funding.
City councillors rejected a staff request for $150,000 in sign maintenance funding, meaning new wraps and other work are paid from other budgets. The sign’s future will be back before council later this year.
Andrew Weir, executive vice-president and chief marketing officer at Tourism Toronto, said city residents and tourists do not seem to be tiring of the three-metre illuminated letters.
“The sign instantly became one of our most recognizable icons,” and is now featured, along with the CN Tower and other landmarks, in materials the not-for-profit agency uses to promote Toronto tourism around the globe.
“It really does seem to have lasting power because new people are always encountering it . . . If you walked by Nathan Phillips Square now and didn’t see it, the square would look funny. It’s become ingrained.”