Crocktown

HARRISONBURG - Hank Johnson has had many achievements in his career in managing the Perfect Square strip mall, but he says one accomplishment towers over them all. Johnson recently led the effort to purchase and install the outdoor LED sign, which not only lists the businesses in the shopping center but also tells the time and temperature.

"We even figured out how to program a little fireworks show with the lights," Johnson says. "I'm keeping that one under my hat until Independence Day."

Johnson says he had the idea to purchase the sign after seeing similar LED signs show up elsewhere in town. Banks have had them for a long time, Johnson says, but recently signs have sprung up at hotels, mortgage centers, and a few other shopping centers in the city. Johnson made his final decision to "go for it" after a visit to Las Vegas. "Those LED signs are everywhere in Vegas," he reports. "And you could really see a difference in customer traffic between places that had 'em and places that didn't."

"I know that guy from WHSV likes to call our city BurgVegas, and it's really starting to feel like it," Johnson says. "The Kroger shopping center and one of the banks down 33 even have multicolored displays. Our city is really moving up in the world. Move over, Atlantic City!"