DETROIT (WWJ) -- In just a matter of hours, Detroit will have its own version of the Hollywood sign.
Detroit’s “Gateway Sign” is being installed on Tuesday along eastbound I-94 between Central Street and Cecil Avenue as the city prepares welcome thousands of visitors ahead of this year's NFL Draft, which is just over two weeks away.
Detroit-based Fairmont Sign Company was tasked with creating the 8-foot-tall letters that will sit on top of two-foot concrete bases, with greenery in front making the sign appear as if it’s “floating.”
While they're not nearly as big as the iconic 45-foot Hollywood Sign, the letters will also light up in the city's colors of green and white.
The plan is for the sign to serve as a friendly greeting for NFL fans from all across the country as they head into the city from Detroit Metro Airport along EB I-94 for the NFL Draft between April 25-27, which is expected to draw as many as 300,000 people to Downtown Detroit.
Smaller aluminum “Welcome to Detroit” signs will also be installed ahead of the draft on the city’s borders at:
• I-75 and 8 Mile
• I-96 and Telegraph
• I-94 at Moross Road
• Southfield Road at 8 Mile
• Southfield Road and Ford Road
In February, officials announced the draft footprint in Downtown Detroit would include an enormous stage and viewing area around Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza, as well as the Woodward corridor. These projects are currently underway downtown.
Other activities and events will be held at Cadillac Square and the Monroe Street Midway.
Meanwhile, Hart Plaza is getting a multimillion-dollar restoration of the fountain and grounds.