Art & Culture

Lights on building in downtown Hollister honor Prince

Mayor Ignacio Velazquez changed the lights to purple over the weekend to honor the music superstar, who died at age 57 recently
The Vault on San Benito Street goes purple in memory of Prince.
The Vault on San Benito Street goes purple in memory of Prince.

The recent death of music superstar Prince at age 57 brought about various reactions from his fans — many of which centered on the color purple, a reference to the singer's hit "Purple Rain." A building in downtown Hollister now pays a special tribute of its own, after Mayor Ignacio Velazquez changed the white lights to purple over the weekend.

Velasquez owns the building at the intersection of San Benito and Fifth streets.The former bank building is currently used for weddings, events and receptions.

The mayor, who was spotted on the rooftop like Batman over Gotham City this weekend, confirmed to BenitoLink by email: "Yes, that was me on top of the ladder. I'm a hands-on type of guy."

He said the purple lights were added to honor the passing of the musician.

"The purple was definitely in remembrance of Prince," Velasquez said, explaining that it was also a chance to repair the existing lights with a better system. 

 

 

 

Leslie David

Leslie David is a Bay Area independent reporter/producer and is a BenitoLink founding board member. She has produced for radio, television, newspaper and magazines in both California and Wyoming. She was with KRON-TV News in San Francisco as camera-woman, editor and field producer, where she won the Commonwealth Club's Thomas Storke Award with Linda Yee for their series on the Aids Epidemic. She started as a small market news reporter shooting her own 16mm film at KEYT-TV Santa Barbara. Leslie lives on a ranch with her family in San Benito County.