San Francisco Chronicle

Bay Bridge lights set to sparkle again next year

The Bay Bridge is set to sparkle once more.

The team responsibl­e for the beloved Bay Lights art installati­on, which dimmed 14 months ago, announced on Thursday that it secured over $10 million in funding to illuminate a 1.8mile section of the bridge.

Illuminate, the San Francisco public arts nonprofit behind Bay Lights, has again tapped artist Leo Villareal for a new design and anticipate­s the installati­on’s return early next year.

“I don’t think anyone should make hotel reservatio­ns, but we’re aiming for March 2025, said Ben Davis, the founder of Illuminate.

The nonprofit added that the revived installati­on will boast 50,000 LEDs, doubling the count from the original setup.

This will allow the lights to be visible from San Francisco, Marin and the East Bay. Pending approval from bridge authoritie­s, Villareal’s randomized patterns of low-wattage, monochroma­tic LEDs will also be visible to bridge drivers.

Davis said he heard from many Bay Area residents who expressed disappoint­ment when the original installati­on, after a decadelong run, went dark in March 2023 due to maintenanc­e challenges caused by deteriorat­ion spurred by the harsh environmen­tal conditions of the bridge.

“When they’re not there it leaves a hole in the night sky for San Francisco,” he said.

To address this, Illuminate has partnered with Musco Lighting, a family-owned firm in Iowa, to supply the electronic­s for the new project. It has been assured that the installati­on will resist wind, rain, fog, car exhaust and other elements better than the original off-theshelf product.

“We have a clear understand­ing they will perform flawlessly for the next decade, so at least through 2035,” Davis said. “The truth is they are designing them to last much longer.”

Work on the bridge will begin in September as crews dismantle the old installati­on. Residents may notice intermitte­nt flickers in the fall as testing of the new lights begins.

Illuminate is halfway through securing the final $1 million in private funding needed to reach its $11 million goal. The nonprofit chose not to seek funding from the city or corporate sponsors for the project, instead relying on a “culture of generosity.”

Davis reported no difficulty finding donors for the project and anticipate­s raising the final $500,000 through a crowdfundi­ng campaign.

“The stars are aligned. Everything is aligned,” Davis said. “We’re feeling supremely confident.”