New gateway sign installed over Mill Avenue in downtown Tempe

Downtown Tempe has a new front door, and it’s hard to miss.

On Monday, work crews installed a gateway-style sign on Mill Avenue just north of University Drive, suspending four-foot-tall letters spelling “MILL AVE” over the street.

The letters hang about 20 feet above the roadway, supported by flexible catenary cables between two V-shaped pylons. The structure weighs 36,300 pounds, and the letters glow at night.

The sign spans roughly 94 feet across the street, marking a new visual entry point into downtown.

A ‘bold and iconic entrance’ for downtown Tempe

The sign is part of Tempe’s Downtown Refresh Project, a multi-year effort launched in 2024 to upgrade Mill Avenue’s look and feel.

So far, that’s meant wider brick sidewalks with additional artistic elements and more than 120 new trees. The goal of the project is simple: make the area more walkable, more polished and more recognizable as the city’s central hub.

City officials are leaning into that idea.

They’ve touted the new Mill Avenue sign as a “bold and iconic entrance” to downtown Tempe that “enhances the district’s identity.”

Tempe Mayor Corey Woods supported the project, pointing to the street’s long-standing role in the city.

“Mill Avenue is a global destination and plays a noteworthy part in the history of our city,” Woods stated in a media release on the project. “By adding this gateway sign, we are honoring the significance of this place for all members of Tempe’s community.”

Not everyone’s impressed with the Mill Avenue sign

Online, the reaction to the Mill Avenue sign has been mixed at best since plans were revealed by city officials.

In a recent discussion on Reddit’s Tempe section, some local users criticized the design, calling it underwhelming compared to other public art possibilities.

“It’s hideous, expensive, and there are much better, much more artistically interesting or visually pleasing options than two giant V’s holding up a street name,” one Reddit user wrote.

Another Redditor compared it to “a dang Party City letter banner.”

Others took a more nostalgic angle. “I’d rather still have Long Wong’s there,” one user wrote, referencing the former bar and music venue that once occupied nearby space.

There’s also skepticism about how it’ll hold up once the weekend crowds take over. One Redditor called it “perfect climbing for drunk guys.”