The Italian flag-colored lines that have decorated Adams Street in Nonantum for 90 years and became the center of a culture war are going away again, as DPW crews have spent the past couple of days power-washing them into oblivion.

The city removed the lines and replaced them with yellow lines in late June, sparking outrage from Nonantum residents and Italian-Americans all over.

Mayor Ruthanne Fuller has said that Adams Street needs two yellow lines down the middle of it, citing traffic data and state law. Opponents say the street is safe enough and accuse the mayor of cherry-picking data to justify the erasure of the Italian flag lines. Dozens of people showed up at City Hall to protest the mayor’s decision.

Neighbors eventually painted the red, white and green lines back during the St. Mary of Carmen Society’s Italian-American festival in July.

Now, the city is replacing those lines with yellow lines again.

“The Adams Street lines are not just paint,” resident Fran Yerardi said Wednesday. “They symbolize heritage, family, and the 90-year legacy of the St. Mary of Carmen Festival. Their removal is a direct attack on Nonantum’s traditions. The fight to preserve Nonantum’s identity continues. Community members are standing together to defend their history and will not be silenced.”

Another resident, Anthony Pellegrini Jr., appeared on NECN Wednesday, saying the mayor’s decision in June was unexpected, since she had allowed the Italian flag-colored lines to remain for her seven years in office so far, and this is her last year in office.

“I think on her way out, she’s just teaching us a lesson that you can’t do what you want around here,” Pellegrini told NECN. “Well, we’ve been doing it a long time.”

In that interview, Pellegrini said residents would repaint the Italian flag lines again.

On Thursday, crews were still blasting the lines with a power-washer to remove them from the street, as nearby neighbors joked about painting the Italian lines back on again soon.