Over the weekend, after a couple of weeks of installation of the signage, the new LED Union Station sign meant to replace the high-maintenance neon structure was illuminated for the first time.

Ogden City Marketing & Communications Director Cindy Reinhard told the Standard-Examiner on Monday that this project has been months in the making.

“Last September, the city was contacted about one of the lights being out at the Union Station and when our team went over to investigate, they sort of realized that the letters were deteriorating,” she said. “The paint around them was chipping and was falling off and then the lights are made of neon and neon is … just incredibly expensive to maintain. It’s expensive to build a new letter and it’s expensive to keep that letter going and when you break it you have to go through the whole process of having a new letter built.”

After being cleared by the Landmark Commission, work began last month to replace the old neon signage with an LED sign that is more stable and lower cost to maintain and operate.

Reinhard said that the project has largely been completed.

“The last thing they have to do is they’re actually working on a control panel because, with turning the letters into LED, there’s going to be some ability to sort of theme the Union Station depending on the season, depending on events,” she said. “They’re working on that in coordination with the fountain that’s also being replaced which will have some LED lights in it.”

Visitors to downtown since this past weekend have noticed this major difference. While the old neon sign was constantly lit in red, the LED sign is able to be cycled through a full spectrum of colors and has done so since.

Meanwhile, work has been underway to refurbish the fountain out in front of Union Station.

Reinhard said that the biggest snag the project has run into so far is some old pipe work that needed attention, but hopes are to have the project wrapped up in the coming months.

“The goal is to have that done here shortly,” she said. “I wasn’t given a firm end date on that, but I know they want it wrapped before we move into like our big season of holidays.”

She added that it’s exciting to be able to bring back and enhance some of the station’s outdoor grandeur as efforts continue to make it the centerpiece of downtown Ogden once again.

“There’s excitement on our end because being able to look at it visually and have it be appealing and have people be excited about it will be a draw for what we’re trying to create,” she said.

In a video posted to the Ogden City Mayor Facebook page, Ogden Mayor Ben Nadolski said these improvements follow several upgrades that are out of the public eye, including utilities, window replacement, basement flooding mitigation and roofing. Later this fall, the Merci Car is expected to get a covering.

Nadolski said that these more publicly visual improvements are only the start.

“We are taking steps and making progress for Union Station all while we plan for big moves like returning passenger rail back to the Union Station and moving our intermodal hub that’s to the north back to the Union Station,” he said in the video.

Ultimately, he said he looks forward to welcoming people from across the globe during the 2034 Winter Olympics as they arrive through Ogden Union Station for Ogden-based events.