The nonprofit plans to sell them eventually. Second Chance’s warehouse already holds letters from dismantled signs from the Ravens stadium and Bel Loc Diner. “They maintain that campus in a way that still speaks to their importance in the community.” Raising money for charityĭomino’s owner, American Sugar Refinery (ASR), donated some of the letters to Second Chance Baltimore, a workforce development nonprofit. “They made sure it was the same in every single way,” he said. “That was a $2 million project, which really speaks to the seriousness of which they approach preservation and their story,” Redding said. During the four-month renovation, O’Malley invited Redding to the roof for a closeup view of the iconic sign. So, the old sign was dismantled in March, and a $2 million LED-light replacement project began.
Brackish air, wind whipping by - it’s a tough place to keep a sign,” said Nicholas Redding, executive director of Preservation Maryland. High winds would knock the sign down and break it. “Neon in that environment has always been challenging. Presiding atop the refinery since 1951, the old sign had been showing its age. “I see it every morning when I get in, a little before 6:00.” When it came time to re-light the famous sign after a $2 million repair project, Domino officials chose Hardy to do the honors. “I’ve never seen a reason to leave,” said Hardy, now a laboratory analyst. One of those loyal employees is Charlotte Hardy, 74, who has worked at Domino Sugar since February 1969. “It’s unusual in the workplace these days, but not unusual for our company.” A sign of the times “Many employees have been here more than 40 years,” Peter O’Malley said. “Generation after generation of people have been coming to work at the Baltimore refinery, earning good wages and making quality products,” said Peter O’Malley, spokesman for ASR, the world’s largest sugar refinery. (ASR), plans to celebrate Domino’s centennial with not-yet-announced events that will be open to the public. This April, Domino’s owner, American Sugar Refinery, Inc. Late last year, it started producing limited-edition 100 th-anniversary sugar packets to be distributed in restaurants. Ships and barges deliver the sugar cane crystals via the Patapsco River, and the refinery produces white, brown and powdered sugar from it. Today, Domino Sugar processes 585,000 tons of raw sugar here.
Centennial celebration in Aprilĭomino Sugar’s Baltimore refinery, one of three in the country, first opened on April 2, 1922. Smoke billowed from one of its 15 buildings, fire trucks rushed to the site, and the smell of burned sugar, akin to crème brulee, filled the air, according to witnesses.įortunately, no one was hurt, and the firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze. Its signature 120-foot-tall red sign represents the city as well as, say, Camden Yards or the Bromo-Seltzer tower.īut last April, while the sign was under renovation, a fire threatened the 30-acre campus, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Many Baltimoreans can cite a similar connection to Domino Sugar, which opened on the Inner Harbor waterfront 100 years ago. After the two were married, Cassie stayed home with the children while Albert continued to work for the company for 47 years. “They had to keep it a secret,” from their boss, Bowers said. The company’s bowling league brought them together, and they started dating. Albert started in the mailroom and rose to the head of the billing department, and Cassie worked as a keypunch operator. Her parents, the late Albert and Cassie Bowers, met at the Baltimore refinery in the 1950s. Last July, Charlotte Hardy, above, lit the restored sign at her longtime employer, Domino Sugar.īaltimore native Cathy Bowers owes her life to Domino Sugar.
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