Citgo sign letters coming down as Boston landmark goes dark. Why it's moving to a new location.
Construction workers began removing letters from the iconic Citgo sign in Boston on Friday, as the landmark prepares to make a short move.
The sign that's been a familiar sight above Kenmore Square for decades will be dark this summer as it's relocated 30 feet higher and 120 feet to the east on a new "super-structure" atop 660 Beacon St. Builders expect the project will take about six months to complete, and hope the sign can be relit in time for the holiday season.
Why is the Citgo sign moving?
The $8 million move "will reestablish the sightlines that has defined its presence in Kenmore Square since 1965," Citgo spokesperson Karl Schmidt said.
The changing neighborhood has made it harder to see the sign from some vantage points. Last year, Boston Red Sox ownership acknowledged that a new office and retail building they plan to build behind the Green Monster could block views of the Citgo sign for some fans inside Fenway Park.
Taking down the Citgo sign
Crews will remove all of the 11-foot-tall blue letters and the red Citgo logo from the sign for cleaning and repainting. It will look "brand-new again" when the project is finished, Pat Lucey with Suffolk Construction said. The current structure holding up the sign will be dismantled by early July.
"This is a carefully planned and highly technical effort to reposition this sign and to preserve it while maintaining its historic presence," he said.
The Citgo sign is the only federally landmarked sign in Massachusetts. Citgo had planned to tear it down in the 1980s, but public outcry saved it. And back in 2017, its future was in doubt again before Citgo and property owners reached a deal to make sure the sign "will continue to shine brightly for years to come."
Red Sox fan Myles Young-Medeiros said he'll miss seeing the Citgo sign shining brightly behind Fenway this summer.
"It's just part of the Red Sox," he said. "It's weird not seeing it lit up in the background."
"This sign is Boston's sign," District 8 City Councilor Sharon Durkan said. "I don't think it's usual to christen a sign moving, but that's how important this sign is."
