Hillcrest Gateway                         1994 Steel/Stainless Steel/Copper Glass/Aluminum/Gold Leaf/Neon 36' Height Commissioned through an open competition by the Hillcrest Business Association to complement the existing Hillcrest Street Sign at the corner or Fifth and University in San Diego.  Implemented and coordinated by Mario Lara, 3789½ Third Avenue, San Diego, CA 92103-4102, 619-295-0172. The intention of the Hillcrest Gateway was to help turn the existing Hillcrest Street Sign and its support columns into a landmark gateway or portal through which the community of Hillcrest may be accessed.  This required the support columns of the Hillcrest Street Sign to be repainted to match the red of the existing sign.  The central element of the "capitals" or "finials" on the columns are two 24" diameter laminated glass balls mounted atop the 30' steel poles.  The balls are illuminated from below by neon rings concealed within oxidized green copper caps.  Above the glass balls are two aluminum cones also 24" in diameter and covered in gold leaf.  The columns are further embellished with stainless steel collars with downward facing flutes just below the copper caps.  These durable materials require no maintenance and are well out of harms way at the top of the thirty foot columns.  The elements are bolted, glued and otherwise permanently attached to the existing steel poles.