Kingston’s City Hall

Kingston’s newly restored City Hall, noteworthy in its design and function, takes its place as a majestic focal point in the city’s midtown. The state of the art restoration, designed by John G. Waite Associates, Architects in Albany, N.Y. begun in December, 1998 and completed in May, 2000, reclaims the building’s distinction as a prime example of High Victorian Gothic municipal style architecture. At the same time, the building updates technological and mechanical systems for contemporary use. Representing the seat of local government, the restoration rekindles confidence in the city’s center.

History of the Architecture

City Hall, constructed between 1873 and 1875, marked Kingston’s incorporation, which unified the Villages of Kingston, Rondout and the nearby hamlet of Wilbur into one city. Situated on the crest of a hill midway between the two former villages, the building stood as a civic symbol for the city’s prosperity and future success. English born architect, Arthur Crooks, known for his churches, designed the structure in the monumental style popular at the time and based his plans on the architecture of Northern Italy and the writings of John Ruskin who wrote and studied in Venice during the mid-nineteenth century. Ruskin introduced this lavish building vocabulary to greater Europe and America. Characteristics of the style include the use of polychromatic building materials like brick, stone and terra cotta to create decorative bands to highlight corners, arches and arcades. Prominent towers are also an important element and in some instances, the upper stage of the tower is often corbeled or stepped-out to add prominence to this feature.

City Hall is considered an outstanding example of this elaborate style. The building’s exterior is highlighted by bands of buff color brick and carved sandstone panels. Engaged columns with foliated capitals flank the entrance. Prior to a fire on June 4, 1927, the tower also boasted a corbeled upper stage surmounted by a finely crafted belfry. The Gothic style tower and belfry burned and was replaced by the present, more restrained Romanesque style belfry. The original roof which was composed of a series of steeply pitched, intersecting gables crowned by delicate iron cresting, was also lost in the fire. The current simplified mansard roof approximates the same pitch as the original steep hipped design. High stone steps at the main entrance were removed and access was lowered.

Myron S. Teller, Gerald W. Betz and George E. Lowe, the three architects who redesigned elements of the building after the 1927 fire, created an elaborate Common Council Chamber (seating 400) for the building’s top floor and fireproofed the entire building. The mayor’s office was moved from the second floor to the first floor. Wood doors were clad in metal. Concrete beams were installed to support interior floors. Four large brick chimneys were removed and capped. Wood floors were replaced with terrazzo (marble chips set in concrete). The wood stairways were replaced with marble. A four-centered arch and a fixed glass tympanum accented the entrance. A decorative wrought-iron screen in a medieval design covered the glass. Cluster columns with Corinthian capitals were stepped back on either side. The lintel had a design of entwining foliage. The balustrades were wrought iron. Plaster walls in the foyer were textured to look like travertine marble, a cream-colored porous Italian stone. Lanterns of wrought iron and leaded glass hung on heavy chains from the ceiling. One large wrought iron chandelier and four small chandeliers hung from the Common Council Chamber ceiling, noted for its elaborately coffered center design. Twenty-three arched plaster reliefs, called lunettes because of their curved shape, bordered the ceiling of the Chamber. The reliefs depict the history of Kingston and the United States. The present restoration was completed to the 1927 modifications, although the aldermen’s desks, were replicated after the original 1873 design.

Restoration of artistic detailing continues. The plaster reliefs in the Chamber originally created by New York based artist, Franz Fritz Engel, are in the process of being restored by EverGreene Painting Studios in New York which also restored the decorative plaster designs throughout the building.

Use, Disuse, Restoration

Built to signify the union of two burgeoning villages (and a hamlet) into a city, City Hall was in use by May 21, 1875 when the Common Council first met in City Hall. Coincidentally - and after years of neglect, it opened to the public 125 years later to the day on May 21, 2000 when the newly restored City Hall was rededicated. What happened in between tells a story of prosperity, economic downturn and rebound.

Kingston’s rapid growth in the 19^th century was due to its unique role as a vital transportation center in the Hudson Valley. The Hudson River, the D&H Canal and the railroad were three key elements in this growth, with railroads becoming a primary force by the late 1800s. Manufacturing was primary and included the production of brick, bluestone, cement and cigars. And while the invention of the automobile in the late 1800s meant a decline in the boarding house and hotel trade, Kingston continued to prosper and City Hall continued to be used and updated. A fire in 1927 which burned the bell tower, collapsed the roof and burned the third floor, led to some exterior streamlining and interior redesign, including fireproofing. City Hall continued as the center of government through the Great Depression, while Kingston’s economy supported shirt and dress factories. In 1950s, Kingston’s economy benefitted by its proximity to IBM’s manufacturing center in the nearby Town of Ulster. Over the next twenty years, while residents held jobs, the city’s infrastructure showed neglect, including City Hall. To remedy the latter, the city took advantage of urban renewal funds in an effort to rebuild its city center and one result was the decision to build new government offices near the city’s waterfront to help Kingston’s economic revitalization. Doors shut on the historic building in 1972, one hundred years after the city voted to build it.

The building, on the National and State Registers of Historic Places, was left to deteriorate for more than two decades. Residents and the advocacy group, Friends of Historic Kingston, helped to save it from demolition.

Still standing after years of neglect, Kingston reclaimed its legacy in 1998, thanks to its mayor T.R. Gallo. Mindful of the building’s significance, after he took office in 1994, Gallo wanted to restore the dilapidated City Hall. For Gallo, the project was a way to rally residents and to build the economy which had slowed after thousands lost their jobs when IBM closed its area offices in the mid 1990s. Gallo secured the city’s future by building on its own resources.

He secured New York State’s designation for Kingston-Ulster Economic Development Zone, now the Kingston-Ulster Empire Zone, which is a 10-year tax credit program to encourage business growth. He founded the city’s non-profit Kingston Local Development Corporation (KLDC) to assist businesses with low interest loans. He pushed for federal funding for waterfront revitalization, now ongoing. He has used the arts and city-wide events to promote the city. These successes created a favorable climate to propose the restoration of City Hall in the spring of 1998. On April 27, 1998 the bipartisan Common Council unanimously voted for bonding to restore City Hall and to upgrade its current facility for its courts and police. Several service groups, banks and corporations pledged support. In addition, state and federal initiatives totaled $2.3 million.

Backed by community and government support, the next challenge in the $6.5 million restoration was to take a deteriorated building to state of the art condition. The architectural firm, John G. Waite Associates, PLLC in Albany, who designed the restoration; York Hunter (Kingston) who managed the project for the City of Kingston; building trades; and not the least, Carey Construction (Kingston) the general contractor which coordinated efforts to successfully interface the historic with the new, all played a part.

Before any restoration could be achieved, the badly deteriorated building, had to be evaluated for damage. The structure was sound, but disuse turned the building into a desert of rusted metal, crumbled walls and broken glass. The chandeliers in the Common Council Chamber hung corroded from water seepage. Plaster, instead of covering the ceilings, covered the floors in dunes of white rubble. Almost every pane of glass in the building’s 120 windows was missing or broken and only the frames remained as stalwart reminders of what once reflected the sun. But in spite of the decay, the building’s good design made it a feasible candidate for restoration.

Maintaining the character of the historic building, while updating its condition, underscored the premise of the restoration, according to Chris Armstrong, project superintendent for Carey Construction. Steven Bowes, site manager for York Hunter, agreed. "The mechanical and electrical systems had to be designed and installed around what was there," Bowes said. "We had to maintain the high ceilings (more than 14 feet in some cases) because of the windows. We couldn’t go through the first floor corridor because of the exposed beams, and there was limited space above the ground floor corridor because of the barreled ceiling. Normally, you are able to install the main supplies for the mechanical and electrical systems above the corridors and feed the room from there, but we couldn’t in this building. We ended up splitting the building into quadrants and installed the plumbing and electrical systems from the ground floor up and the heating and cooling duct work from the attic level down. It took a lot of coordination with the trades to make everything fit in the limited spaces and within the historical context of the building.

"Look at the ceiling of the Common Council Chamber. We had to coordinate how we were going to provide heating and air conditioning in the room without changing the decorative plaster ceiling. We ended up putting a continuous linear diffuser in the ceiling around the entire chamber and incorporated it with the decorative plaster. You barely notice it because of all the coordinating and planning that went into it."

Carey’s Armstrong provided another perspective. "Usually on a contemporary job, the owner runs out of money at the end and there is a tendency to cut corners," Armstrong said. "When this building was originally built and subsequently restored after the 1927 fire, no corners were cut. Therefore, we weren’t trying to take a tin box and make it into a gold box. We had a gold box we were trying to restore. This building is on the National Register of Historic Places. We had to pay attention to historic details."

Those historic details - restoring or replicating artwork, moldings, faux finishes, ceiling designs, as well as structural and electrical work and removal of hazardous material were integral to the architects’ renovation design. The phased plan, designed by project manager and architect Michael Curcio began with exterior restoration, followed by interior demolition and hazardous material abatement, structural and masonry work, then interior restoration.

Stephen M. Finkle, Director of Economic and Community Development and manager of the City Hall project, called the restoration the most challenging project he has managed in his 23-year career. "Over the years, I would pass the building, reflect on its condition and wonder what the future would hold for it," Finkle said. "The challenge in managing this project for Dan Mills (Daniel P. Mills, loan coordinator for city’s Loan Development Corporation) and me was balancing the historic integrity with fiscal concerns.

"We worked with Mayor Gallo and our elected officials to supplement the city’s original financial commitment with federal, state and private funds. We were fortunate to have an excellent contractor as well as excellent architects, construction managers and workers who took great care in restoring this building to its present condition."

The building now stands for generations to come and the significance of the restoration is foremost for Mayor T.R. Gallo. "The city’s key to promoting tourism is in its historic buildings, and this is one of its most significant," Gallo said. "The fact that the city stood behind the restoration shows Kingston’s commitment to the project. The support was unprecedented. Senior citizens backed the project from the start and raised money for the restoration. Friends of Historic Kingston also raised money and helped promote the cause. Kingston High School students researched the building’s artwork. The grand opening on May 21, 2000 brought thousands of citizens and visitors to the building. City Hall received a Year 2000 Annual Award from the Preservation of New York State for the restoration and is part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s web site (www.nthp.org).Regionally, the Mid-Hudson Pattern for Progress, a public research, analysis, policy and planning group, also recognizes the restoration work we’ve done with an award. By giving the city back its midtown landmark, we preserve Kingston’s heritage and give it renewed pride.

"This is the most significant thing I’ve done since I was elected mayor in November of 1993. We set a goal and reached out to federal and state government for support, in order to make the project as affordable as possible for city taxpayers. Our city, its government, its citizens, all have a right to be very proud."