diff --git a/src/applications/project/controller/PhabricatorProjectController.php b/src/applications/project/controller/PhabricatorProjectController.php
--- a/src/applications/project/controller/PhabricatorProjectController.php
+++ b/src/applications/project/controller/PhabricatorProjectController.php
@@ -38,15 +38,26 @@
   }
 
   public function buildIconNavView(PhabricatorProject $project) {
+    $user = $this->getRequest()->getUser();
     $id = $project->getID();
     $picture = $project->getProfileImageURI();
     $name = $project->getName();
 
+    $columns = id(new PhabricatorProjectColumnQuery())
+      ->setViewer($user)
+      ->withProjectPHIDs(array($project->getPHID()))
+      ->execute();
+    if ($columns) {
+      $board_icon = 'fa-columns';
+    } else {
+      $board_icon = 'fa-columns grey';
+    }
+
     $nav = new AphrontSideNavFilterView();
     $nav->setIconNav(true);
     $nav->setBaseURI(new PhutilURI($this->getApplicationURI()));
     $nav->addIcon("profile/{$id}/", $name, null, $picture);
-    $nav->addIcon("board/{$id}/", pht('Workboard'), 'fa-columns');
+    $nav->addIcon("board/{$id}/", pht('Workboard'), $board_icon);
     $nav->addIcon("feed/{$id}/", pht('Feed'), 'fa-newspaper-o');
     $nav->addIcon("members/{$id}/", pht('Members'), 'fa-group');
     $nav->addIcon("edit/{$id}/", pht('Edit'), 'fa-pencil');