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Fans sit atop the Green Monster with the iconic Citgo sign visible beyond Fenway Park during a game between the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins on July 22, 2016, in Boston. The landmark sign is being temporarily removed and relocated as part of a redevelopment project in Kenmore Square.

For many Red Sox fans, the Citgo sign is as much a part of Fenway Park as the Green Monster itself. The towering landmark has watched over generations of games from nearby Kenmore Square, appearing in countless broadcasts and serving as one of the most recognizable visuals associated with baseball’s oldest active ballpark.

This summer, however, that familiar view is about to disappear.

Crews began removing letters from the iconic Citgo sign on Friday, May 29, as part of a relocation project that will temporarily take the landmark off the Boston skyline. While the sign is not going away permanently, Red Sox fans will spend much of the 2026 season without one of Fenway Park’s most recognizable backdrops.

According to CBS Boston, the sign is being moved 30 feet higher and 120 feet east as part of redevelopment work at 660 Beacon Street. The project is expected to take roughly six months to complete.

Why Red Sox Fans Care About the Citgo Sign

The Citgo sign has never technically been part of Fenway Park, but it has become inseparable from the ballpark’s identity.

For decades, television cameras have captured the landmark beyond the Green Monster, making it one of the most recognizable sights in Major League Baseball. Along with the Monster, Pesky’s Pole and the manual scoreboard, the sign has become part of the visual language of Red Sox baseball.

That is why the temporary disappearance is expected to feel strange for many fans.

The sign has overlooked generations of Red Sox games since 1965, becoming a fixture of the neighborhood surrounding Fenway Park. Whether fans are walking through Kenmore Square before first pitch or watching a game from home, the sign has long served as a familiar reminder that they are in Red Sox country.

Why the Citgo Sign Is Being Moved

The relocation is designed to preserve the sign’s visibility for future generations.

Developers say the move will help restore the sightlines that originally made the landmark such a defining feature of Kenmore Square. As the neighborhood continues to evolve, concerns have grown that new construction could eventually obstruct views of the sign.

CBS Boston reported that Red Sox ownership acknowledged last year that a planned office and retail building behind the Green Monster could block views of the Citgo sign from some locations inside Fenway Park.

Rather than allow the landmark to become hidden, developers opted to relocate it.

The project involves removing the 11-foot-tall blue letters and red Citgo logo before reinstalling the sign on a new superstructure. Once completed, officials expect the sign to be more visible than it is today.

“This is a carefully planned and highly technical effort to reposition this sign and to preserve it while maintaining its historic presence,” developer Karol Schmidt said, according to CBS Boston.

A Boston Landmark That Has Survived Before

This is not the first time the future of the Citgo sign has been uncertain.

The landmark narrowly avoided demolition in the 1980s after public opposition helped save it. Questions about its future surfaced again in 2017 before Citgo and the property’s owners reached an agreement that ensured the sign would remain a part of the Boston skyline.

Today, it remains the only federally landmarked sign in Massachusetts.

While the sign is expected to return in time for the holiday season, many Red Sox fans will notice its absence throughout the summer months.

Red Sox fan Myles Young-Medeiros summed up that feeling while speaking with CBS Boston.

“It’s just part of the Red Sox,” he said. “It’s weird not seeing it lit up in the background.”

District 8 City Councilor Sharon Durkan offered a similar perspective.

“This sign is Boston’s sign,” Durkan said, according to CBS Boston. “I don’t think it’s usual to christen a sign moving, but that’s how important this sign is.”

For now, one of baseball’s most iconic backdrops is going dark. But if all goes according to plan, the Citgo sign will return later this year, continuing a relationship with Fenway Park and Red Sox fans that has spanned more than six decades.