The gateway sign, which has been in the works since 2004, will feature the H at the end of Fort Worth closer to the frontage road and the F closer to downtown. Lights will illuminate the sign after sunset.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The $1 million project is expected to be complete in April 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis unique partnership opportunity with the state of Texas will create an impactful and iconic work of art that visitors will see as they come into Fort Worth,\u201d Dana Burghdoff, Fort Worth assistant city manager, said in a statement. \u201cIt\u2019s a unique public art project and we\u2019re pleased to see it progressing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The State Highway 121 Art Project has taken decades to launch due to multiple challenges, including initial community opposition and changes in state and federal regulations.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Anne Allen, project manager with Fort Worth Public Art, has overseen the gateway for 18 years. Seeing the sign become a reality has been a result of lots of patience, she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve had a lot of perseverance on my part as project manager, the city\u2019s determination to see this project happen, and the original design team\u2019s determination to stick with it,\u201d Allen said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Council member Jeanette Martinez, who represents District 11, the area where the sign will be installed, did not provide a comment by publication time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A project with many starts, but even more stops<\/strong><\/p>\n Fort Worth\u2019s vision for its own gateway sign \u2014 like the iconic Hollywood sign in Los Angeles \u2014 came into focus when the $265,000 Governor\u2019s Community Achievement Award was presented to the city\u2019s Environmental Management Department for its efforts in promoting the Keep Fort Worth Beautiful organization.\u00a0<\/p>\n The funds had to be used for some type of highway beautification project, and a monument in what was then-District 5 seemed like the best fit, Allen said. The project was first proposed along Interstate 30 near Fort Worth\u2019s now-gone Homeless Christmas Tree<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n In 2007, the city invited Fort Worth Public Art to oversee the gateway sign as part of the program\u2019s mission to enhance community identities<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n By November 2010, Fort Worth Public Art selected an Arlington-based artist to design the project, Allen said, but the creative withdrew from the project for personal reasons. The renderings and location were then scrapped after residents from the nearby Meadowbrook and Tandy Hills neighborhoods didn\u2019t like the look and impact to the skyline view near Gateway Park.<\/p>\n The steering committee spent the next few months identifying other places on I-30 that could support the sign. The committee found an ideal spot<\/a>, between Eastchase Parkway and Cooks Lane, just west of Central Bible Church.<\/p>\n In April 2012, Fort Worth Public Art relaunched its artist selection process and selected Tarrant-based artist Etty Horowitz and Dallas-based landscape architect Kevin Sloan for the design. The gateway sign\u2019s preliminary design was reviewed by the community in March 2014 and was on track to be completed<\/a> in spring 2017.\u00a0<\/p>\n Progress slowed again in fall 2016 when the Texas Department of Transportation said the project had to move as the previously approved site along I-30 was no longer feasible due to its size and the expansion of the highway<\/a>. The project also had to relocate because the proposed high-speed rail from Dallas to Fort Worth, if completed, would run along the north side of the interstate<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n In January 2018, the gateway sign was moved to State Highway 121<\/a> as the site offered a \u201cdramatic view\u201d of the downtown skyline, Allen explained, and wasn\u2019t a federal highway with those associated regulations.\u00a0<\/p>\n Horowitz and Sloan went back to the drawing board and revised the existing design for final approval in January 2019.\u00a0<\/p>\n Two years later, tragedy struck, Allen said: Sloan died of brain cancer<\/a> at 63 on Oct. 29, 2021. Development continued slowly after Sloan\u2019s death, Allen said.<\/p>\n The project was temporarily paused for a few months in 2022 and then again in fall 2024 as Fort Worth Public Art focused on finding additional funding for labor and construction cost increases.<\/p>\n The project\u2019s final hurdle was crossed in late April when Fort Worth City Council approved<\/a> a $571,578 contract with C. Green Scaping for construction of the sign.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been our longest-running project, but we\u2019re very pleased to know that it\u2019s getting ready to break ground and get started,\u201d Allen said.<\/p>\n Once the gateway sign is constructed, visitors are advised not to pull over for photos. The artists envisioned the public art project to be viewed from cars in motion.<\/p>\n For those visiting Fort Worth for the first time, Allen said, the sign serves as a romantic nod to the city\u2019s history and a reminder that this is \u201cwhere the West begins.\u201d<\/p>\n For specific information about the project\u2019s construction process, traffic control, schedule and working hours, read notes from the Fort Worth Report Documenters here<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n David Moreno is the arts and culture reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at david.moreno@fortworthreport.org or @davidmreports<\/a>.<\/p>\n At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n Fort Worth Report is certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative<\/a> for adhering to standards for ethical journalism.<\/p>\n Republish This Story<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/unnamed.jpeg\")
Preliminary artist\u2019s rendering of the gateway monument shows the sign as originally planned for Interstate 30 in east Fort Worth. (Courtesy image | Fort Worth Public Art)<\/p>\n
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