Bad weather again thwarts Wells Fargo change planned for Charlotte skyline

For the second time in as many months, a sign that will change Charlotte’s skyline has been delayed.

Wells Fargo canceled Sunday’s plans to add its 14-foot-tall letters spelling out the bank’s name on top of the 48-story uptown tower at 550 S. Tryon St. Fog and low visibility meant Wells Fargo needed to postpone the signage installation, bank spokesman Josh Dunn told The Charlotte Observer on Monday.

The former Duke Energy headquarters building is one of the tallest and best-known buildings in the city, famous for its handlebar roof and LED light show. The new Wells Fargo sign will be on both sides of the handlebar and 1,880 square feet across.

The bank originally planned to install the sign on April 6 but that was postponed because of high winds forecast, Dunn previously told The Charlotte Observer.

Wells Fargo first detailed plans for the sign on the building in September 2023 in a rezoning petition to the city. The bank is based in San Francisco but has its largest employment base in Charlotte, with 27,000 employees in the region.

A new installation date has not yet been set.

Wells Fargo sign plans were over a year in the making

In February 2024, City Council approved the sign, despite a recommendation from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Commission’s zoning committee to deny it.

The committee said even though Wells Fargo’s plan is consistent with the Charlotte Center City 2040 Vision Plan, it was concerned by the size of the signs and “attractiveness.”

The Wells Fargo sign is the same height as Truist Center signage.

Three years ago, when Truist bank put its name and logo on top of its uptown headquarters at the former Hearst Tower, the building’s architect called it vandalism and a petition pleaded to take it down. But the Wells Fargo sign did not receive community opposition to its plan, the Observer previously reported.

The signage and enhanced lighting on the building are part Wells Fargo’s $500 million investment over five years in Charlotte.

Wells Fargo has about 247,000 workers worldwide. More than 6,000 employees work in uptown and 10,000 work from the Customer Information Center complex.

This story was originally published May 12, 2025 at 1:37 PM.