Dallas Magnolia Hotel’s iconic Pegasus sign is in danger of falling down and causing harm and damage if not repaired according to a Dallas Morning News article from April 13. They say,
“The nearly 90-year-old steel base for the 15-ton sign is so corroded that it could fall off the roof, they said. The Dallas City Council approved close to $358,000 to repair and stabilize the base as well as to fix corrosion on a rooftop crane needed to get to the sign and replace missing neon lighting.
Dallas City Manager T.C. Broadnax said high winds in recent weeks make securing the sign a high priority and that ultimately, it’s the city’s responsibility to pay for the repairs.
“We own it today, we’re responsible for it today,” he said.
The neon Pegasus sign is a Dallas landmark, and the hotel site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The 29-story building was the city’s first skyscraper when it was built in 1922 as the headquarters of the Magnolia Oil Company. The Pegasus was the company logo, and a neon sign of the creature was affixed to the top of the building in 1934.”
Despite the approval of the repair, Councilman Bazaldua made efforts to first look for alternatives as he questioned Benjamin Espino of Assistant Director of the Arts and Culture Office According to a WFAA article from April 14 which reports
“At this point, we did not really have any other options,” Espino told the council on Wednesday. “It’s really at a state of corrosive disrepair. So we need to move forward, since it is a city asset and a very important part of the public art collection.”
Espino said the hotel, which was purchased last year by the hotel company NewcrestImage, is not contributing to the repairs. Instead, the city and the hotel are having “preliminary conversations” about a future partnership to help maintain the Pegasus, after the city pays for the repairs.
“So another sweet deal for a corporate entity?” Bazaldua asked Espino.
“We’re looking forward to conversations with them to see about a private-public partnership to help keep this icon,” Espino responded.”
The current Pegasus sign in the roof is just a replica of the original since the original was taken to Omni Hotel. While the rest of the hotel belongs to NewCrestImage, the city maintained ownership over the rooftop sign.