Fort Worth’s historic Pioneer Tower shines bright once again

After decades of standing in the dark, Pioneer Tower in Fort Worth is once again shining bright.

FORT WORTH, Texas - After decades of standing in the dark, Pioneer Tower in Fort Worth is once again shining bright.

The Art Deco tower built in 1936 was once lit from the inside. It went dark about 40 years ago, and there were aluminum grates covering the openings on the side of the tower.

Earlier this year, the city approved millions of dollars to give it new life.

Wednesday was the first time in about four decades that Pioneer Tower was all lit up. It took months of renovation inside and out.

The new lights are built to feature various colors to mark holidays and milestones for the whole city to see.

Pioneer Tower has been dark for decades. Only longtime locals remember when it wasn’t.

“I will tell you this. I’m old enough,” said Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price. “I grew up just west of here, and you could see this tower at night. It was lit then.”

The tower was built in 1936, along with the Will Rogers Memorial Auditorium and Coliseum. It’s a striking piece of Art Deco architecture. At 208 feet, it’s the tallest outside of Downtown Fort Worth.

“If you look at the old photographs, this was the far western prairie lands of Fort Worth,” said Richard Zavala with the city of Fort Worth. “So it stood out here alone. That vision in and of itself created a sense of let’s do something more out here.”

“Really, a lot of people identify Will Rogers with this tower,” Price said “So it was critical that we do it. And you can’t let a piece like that crumble.”

In January, the city council unanimously approved a list of repairs with a price tag of nearly $4 million. But with additional repairs needed this fall, the city approved another million for the project.

“$4.7 million is well worth the money,” said Councilman Dennis Shingleton. “Not only does it fix the lighting. It’s more than that. The facade has all been sandblasted and cleaned.”

The tower’s rehabilitation also included fixing infrastructure issues, removing aluminum grates and replacing 6,000 glass blocks on the side of the tower.

Mayor Price hopes the next generation has its chance to make new memories with the tower as a backdrop.

The work isn’t done yet. Fort Worth Public Art plans to use video projection mapping to project pictures and videos on the side of the tower. They hope to have that finished by December.