Clare Louise More than 1,300 people paid for the return of The Bay Lights. J-P Conte was among them, according to Illuminate, the nonprofit that runs the installation on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.
Its rebuild cost $11 million. Illuminate said in February 2026 that all of it was raised from private donors, and the lights were switched back on that March.
Starting Small
Fundraising began with very little. Illuminate said the replacement campaign held just over $51,000 when the original lights were turned off in 2023.
Large gifts and grassroots donations closed the distance over the next few years. No public money was needed.
A Donor for Both Versions
Conte had already helped fund the first installation in 2012, Illuminate said. Then he gave again. Many earlier supporters did the same, according to the nonprofit.
“Supporting The Bay Lights has always been about investing in the soul of San Francisco,” Conte said in the announcement.
Where the Money Went
Musco Lighting engineered the new system, which runs on 48,000 LEDs designed for the bridge’s wind and salt air. Lights come on every night from dusk until dawn along 1.8 miles of the bridge’s northern cable plane, Illuminate said.
Leo Villareal, the artist behind the work, designed the original, which first lit the bridge in 2013. That version went dark in 2023. The rebuild took three years.
His Giving in San Francisco
Conte is the founder and managing partner of his family office, Lupine Crest Capital, which launched in March 2025. He also gives through the J-P Conte Family Foundation, which has its home in San Francisco.
Bay Area education programs have been a steady focus, including SEO Scholars and 10,000 Degrees, and he sits on the advisory board of Sponsors for Educational Opportunity San Francisco and was honored at its 2022 Achievement Benefit, where more than $4 million was raised.
Research Before Giving
Jean-Pierre Conte has written several Forbes Business Council columns on philanthropy, and a June 2025 piece argued that donors should study an organization before giving, much as an investor studies a company before buying it.
“Just like with investing, a smart philanthropist should always do their due diligence,” he wrote.
“Modern businesses have a primary goal: Maximize shareholder value,” J-P Conte wrote in that column. For nonprofits, he argued, the comparable measure is the quality of their services and the number of people they reach.
That column also called for hands-on involvement and measurable outcomes. Illuminate’s announcement listed JP Conte with the many donors who returned for the rebuild.
