It’s a sight that grabs people’s attention like moths to a flame.
Whether they look out of their Jersey City apartment or stroll down a Hoboken street – or even walk across the river in lower Manhattan – they can see, high in the sky, the roof changing colors at the 32-story Newport Office Center VII at 480 Washington Blvd.
The 72 light fixtures change colors throughout the night for specific holidays and seasons.
Since 2003, after the building opened for business, the LeFrak Organization has called it the “Light Show.”
According to the Lefrak Organization, the idea for the show was conceived by Richard Lefrak, Chairman and CEO of the Lefrak Organization, the development company that built the entire 600-acre Newport community on the Jersey City waterfront.
Dawn Chiang is the “Light Show” programmer responsible for creating and implementing the lighting patterns.
“Developing the Newport Office Center VII ‘Light Show’ was a remarkable opportunity to play with light and color in endless combinations of movement, intensity, and color,” Chiang said, “[in] combinations not seen in other media, be it video, photographs, or paintings.”
Newport has over the years taken lights to heights, as there is also a lighted pyramid on top of Newport Office Center IV on Washington Boulevard and at the 9/11 Memorial in Newport’s Town Square.What you’ll see
For those curious about how the “Light Show” works, here are the specifics:
At 6 p.m. and 9 p.m., depending on the season, the show runs in half-hour “seasonal” patterns, utilizing colors applicable to winter, spring, summer, or fall (blues and purples for winter; reds, oranges, and yellows for fall; etc.)
Around holidays, the “Show” runs continuously during the entire evening, using colors relevant for a particular holiday.
The lights either flash on and off, or run in waves like a flag waving in the breeze.
There are more than 20 holidays observed via the lights (see sidebar for list).
The lighting design was completed by Ed Galto, president, and Brian Pasechnik, vice-president of electrical engineering, of OMDEX Inc., Consulting Engineers of Midland Park, N.J. Thought it was ‘cheesy’ at first
Jersey City resident Norm Francoeur is a commercial photographer and an artist well known for the light fixture art that he has displayed in various venues.
Currently, his art is showing in the St. Francis Hospital parking garage (known as ARTPARK) on Erie Street between Ninth and 10th Streets in downtown Jersey City.
Francoeur said when he lived at the former 111 First St. artists’ complex, he noticed the lights.
“I thought it was a little bit cheesy because they were trying too hard with the lights,” Francoeur said. “The lights would move too fast. But it seems over the years they have mellowed it out. They have put it on slower speed and have been using purples and blues.” SIDEBAR At the present time, the holiday schedule is as follows:
* Christmas Season – green/red
* Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday – red/black/green
* Lincoln’s Birthday – red/white/blue
* Valentine’s Day – red/pink
* President Day – red/white/blue
* Washington’s Birthday – red/white/blue
* St. Patrick’s Day – green/white
* Passover – light blue/white
* Easter – yellow/purple/white
* Earth Day – green/red/yellow
* Cinco de Mayo – red/white/green
* Mother’s Day – red/pink
* Memorial Day – red/white/blue
* Flag Day – red/white/blue
* US Independence Day – red/white/blue
* Labor Day – red/white/blue
* Rosh Hashanah – blue/white
* Yom Kippur – blue/white
* Columbus Day (Italian) – red/white/green
* Halloween – orange/black
* Veterans Day – red/white/blue
* Eid-al-Fitr (end of Ramadan) – green/white
* Thanksgiving – orange/brown/yellow Comments on this story can be sent to rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com