Lit Brothers Building

The Lit Brothers Building, built in 1891, once held a steel billboard structure on its rooftop, which was removed in 1984, when it became structurally unsound. The new owners, Brickstone Realty, received permission from the Historical Commission to replace the rooftop structure with a modern steel structure that would house an electronic messaging board. Low and behold, it was determined that the original structure was galvanized and lasted close to 100 years! Consequently, the new steel structure was specified for a galvanized coating. The Historical Commission approved the design noting that the structure, as presented, would be able to "endure the test of time."

The structure of the rooftop sign runs 75 feet along the 7th Street side and 81 feet along Market Street. The framing was constructed of galvanized tube steel. One inch thick plates were used as counter weights to offset the potential winds that the billboard could see atop the building. The structure was designed to stand up to the environmental conditions that the older structure could not, especially with the added weight created by the modern electronic messaging board. Galvanized steel protects the structure from the corroding elements of rain and snow, while the plates add stability from the wind. All the framing is wrapped with a modern digital display curtain able to present a variety of messages, from the Pope's 2015 visit to Philadelphia to paid advertisements.