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Lucy the Elephant to get a formal unveiling Dec. 28 after 15-month, $2.4 million renovation

The scaffolding and shroud have already been removed from Lucy, but the roadside diva will still get a dramatic unveiling.

Lucy the Elephant has finally emerged from her scaffolding after a $2 million exterior renovation as seen in this Dec. 15 photo. An official unveiling will be held Dec. 28 at the Margate icon.
Lucy the Elephant has finally emerged from her scaffolding after a $2 million exterior renovation as seen in this Dec. 15 photo. An official unveiling will be held Dec. 28 at the Margate icon.Read moreAmy S. Rosenberg

MARGATE, N.J. — After a 15-month renovation whose costs reached $2.4 million, the Margate icon Lucy the Elephant will get a formal unveiling Dec. 28.

In truth, the scaffolding and shroud have already been removed from Lucy, a process that began after a test Nov. 21 for leaks that involved the Margate Fire Department. And she truly looks lovely in her new skin, a brighter, shinier version than before with slightly different tusk markings.

But like any diva, Lucy demands a formal unveiling, and so she will have one at 5:30 p.m. Dec. 28, during which her handlers promise she will be revealed “in a spectacular shower of light at a ceremony.”

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The historic roadside attraction began life in 1881. Then known as the Elephant Bazaar, it was designed to attract tourists and promote real estate.

Lucy was named to the National Park Registry of Historical Landmarks in 1976.

The renovation involved fashioning a new metal exterior.