Objet d'Heart

Boston fights for a sign

For years it presided gaily over the chaos that Bostonians call Kenmore Square, welcoming Red Sox fans to near by Fenway Park, students to Boston University, and, on every Patriot's Day in April, weary runners to the last half-mile of the city's famed marathon. With its red, white and blue neon pulsating gaudily above the rooftops, the sign advertising Citgo, the Cities Service Company's trademark, somehow seemed right for Boston; for all its tackiness, the great ad in the sky fitted in. But now a threat looms over the garish and beloved landmark: Cities Service wants to tear it down.

The beginning of the end for the sign came in 1979 when, at the behest of Governor Edward King, the company turned off the electricity as a symbolic energy-saving gesture. In October, Cities Service decided to dismantle the steadily deteriorating 60-ft.-high billboard, but when the wreckers arrived last month, the defenders of the beacon stopped the demolition. In April they had asked Boston's landmarks commission to declare that the structure should be preserved. Backers of the sign claimed it was a superb example of urban neon art.

If the commission decides on Jan.11 that Boston's objet d 'heart should be saved, the next question will be who should pay for it. The company has said that it does not want to ante up the estimated $50,000 for restoration costs.

Why are Bostonians fighting to give a defunct electric advertisement the same landmark protection as hallowed Boston Common? Arthur Krim, a consultant to the Massachusetts Historical Society, puts the issue simply:"This sign is also part of the heritage that makes Boston a very interesting place to be."

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