SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — The Bay Bridge lights will officially return Friday night with a lighting ceremony along San Francisco’s Embarcadero.
The organization behind the installation and civic leaders will be there for the countdown.
Many restaurants, bars, and hotels in San Francisco are elated that the lights will be back.
Some say it’ll make city by the Bay look even more dazzling.
VIDEO: Bay Bridge lights are here to stay: Get a close up look at the new installation
The western portion of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge lights are back with a newly-engineered LED system and a redesigned sequence of movement.
“I love it. It brings good positive vibes here in San Francisco,” said Roy Leo Matawaran of San Francisco.
“It’s really exciting to see this come back,” said Mona Pezeshki of San Francisco.
“I think people are going to see those lights and say ‘hey, you got to go to the city’,” said Carl Schroers from Menlo Park.
The public art installation first went up in 2013. But then, they went dark three years ago because of damage from harsh environmental conditions.
Nonprofit Illuminate raised $11 million in donations for repairs.
The bridge lights will be back and better than before.
“There’s double amount the lights that are up there on the bridge,” said Pete Sittnick, Managing Partner of Waterbar Restaurant. “There are new patterns; it’s enhanced and it’s so very cool to see! You’ll be able to see it from a further distance.”
That’s great news for many local businesses like Hog Island Oyster at the Ferry Building.
“People love our view of the Bay Bridge. So, it’s going to bring more people out and add more excitement to the city, said Mark Ninyo, Assistant General Manager of Hog Island Oyster.
One Hotel San Francisco is also excited about the big comeback.
“The more movement is very exciting to me. I’m really ready to dine out here on the patio and experience the whole thing,” said Joel Costa with 1 Hotel San Francisco. “You hear people buzzing about it. Oh, it’s almost like having fireworks every day of the year.”
Waterbar Restaurant at the base of the Bay Bridge has probably has one of the best views of the Bay Lights.
“We’re really happy to be the stewards of the Bay lights,” said Sittnick.
Sittnick said when the lights first went up in 2013, that boosted business.
“First time they went up, we saw our business increase over that year about 15%,” said Sittnick. “I think this is something that is really going to elevate the waterfront. It brightens it up and it brings people down here and that’s a good thing.”
Bringing the lights back to the Bay Bridge is a big moment for San Francisco.
“I think light is going to add a lot of pizzazz and fun to the city,” said Ninyo.
“I think it’s going to bring people out. With family, tourists, friends. It’s going to make it fun to hang out around here,” said Pezeshki.
1 Hotel San Francisco is holding a special event to celebrate the Bay Bridge lighting.
“We are having an event here Friday night. We are having a raw bar, and we have a live band to celebrate the return of the lights,” said Costa.
On Friday night, Waterbar will have a private event for civic leaders, the artist, Illuminate, some of the donors and the Caltrans workers who helped put up the lights.
Sittnick said the ceremony to relight the Bay Lights will be held between Waterbar and Epic Steak.
Epic Steak will be open to the public.
“This is a big moment to bring the light back to San Francisco,” said Sittnick. “I feel it’s something that belongs to the city. But it’s also inspiring and reflective of the energy that is San Francisco. The joy, the happiness, the awe, that’s all part of coming back to San Francisco and helping us keep this positive momentum going for San Francisco”
You can watch the grand relighting ceremony live on ABC7 News.com beginning at 7 p.m.
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